- Date
- May 18, 2024, 14:30 local (18:30 UTC)
- Place
- New Washington, OH
- Injuries
- 1 minor
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Phase of flight
- Maneuvering
- Aircraft
- N4196KAir Tractor AT-602
- Defining event
- Maneuvering-low-alt flying: Low altitude operation/event
- Weather
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Status
- Completed
- Report
- Approved by Office Director
- Investigation class
- Class 4 - Basic report with no Prelim publish
- NTSB office
- Eastern Region Aviation
- Parties
- FAA/FSDO
- FAA report
- 20240518004969A
- Case key
- 194280
From the NTSB’s public API. By law, NTSB reports can’t be used as evidence in lawsuits over the accident.
On this page
Probable cause
The pilot’s failure to maintain clearance from powerlines during an aerial application flight.
Findings · 3
NTSB’s coded findings. Those marked are part of the probable cause; the rest are factors or other findings. Under each, the cases with the same finding.
Sequence of events
The events NTSB coded, in order, by phase of flight. The defining event is the one that best describes the accident. Under each, the cases with the same event anywhere in their sequence.
Analysis
The pilot of the aerial application airplane surveyed the field at a higher altitude prior to spraying. He determined that spraying north and south, while flying below high-tension lines, would require the least amount of maneuvering in the heavy airplane. The pilot flew the first pass uneventfully; however, during the second pass, the airplane’s rudder contacted a powerline. The rudder separated and the airplane landed sideways in the field, resulting in substantial damage to the wings and fuselage. The pilot stated that there were no preimpact mechanical malfunctions or failures of the airplane that would have precluded normal operation.
Aircraft
- Registration
- N4196K
- Reported as
- Air Tractor AT-602
- Category
- Airplane
- Serial number
- 602-1136
- Built
- 2005
- Airframe hours
- 8,319
- Engine
- Pratt & Whitney PT6A-60AG, 1,050 horsepower, turbo prop
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Aerial application · Part 137
- Airworthiness certificate
- Special, Restricted (Special)
- Last inspection
- 100 hour · March 1, 2024 · 19 hours before
- Departed
- 17G · Bucyrus, OH
- Equipment
- Stall warning system, ADS-B, Electronic flight bag or handheld device
Matched to the registry by N-number and the event date; the registry’s history has gaps, so older matches can be wrong. Compare the reported make and model.
Flight crew
As NTSB recorded them. NTSB leaves out names.
- Role
- Pilot
- Age
- 51
- Injuries
- Minor
- Certificates
- Flight instructor, Airline transport, Commercial
- Airplane ratings
- Single-engine sea, Single-engine land, Multi-engine land
- Instrument ratings
- Airplane
- Medical
- Class 1, Without waivers/limitations
- Last flight review
- May 1, 2024
- Seat
- Single
- Restraint
- 4-point
- Flight hours
- 9,800 total · 50 in this make and model · 9,215 as pilot in command · 105 in the last 90 days · 82 in the last 30 days · 11 in the last 24 hours
Weather
- Conditions
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Wind
- 350° at 3 knots
- Visibility
- 10 statute miles
- Lowest ceiling
- 7,500 ft broken
- Temperature
- 79 °F, dew point 61 °F
- Altimeter
- 29.91 inHg
- Observed at
- MFD, 15 nm away
- METAR
- KMFD 181852Z 35003KT 10SM FEW044 BKN075 BKN090 26/16 A2991 RMK AO2 SLP122 T02610156
Docket · 2
The files NTSB released with the investigation on June 28, 2024, on NTSB’s docket system: statements, records, photos and specialists’ reports. 2.7 MB in all.
FAA reports on this event · 1
The FAA’s own accident and incident reports, matched to the aircraft by N-number and date.