- Date
- May 2, 1990, 10:45 local (15:45 UTC)
- Place
- Ville Platte, LA
- Injuries
- 1 uninjured
- Damage
- Destroyed
- Phase of flight
- Maneuvering
- Aircraft
- N8938HGrumman G-164A
- Weather
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Status
- Completed · report September 10, 1992
- Report
- Approved by Office Director
- FAA report
- 19900502013259A
- Case key
- 22984
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
Partial loss of engine power due to a cracked number four cylinder intake rocker box housing. The lack of a suitable forced landing site was a related factor.
Sequence of events
NTSB’s coding before 2008: each occurrence and phase of flight, and the causes and factors under it. The codes are defined in NTSB’s coding manual.
Analysis
The ag pilot was spreading seed rice on the field, and during the second pass, the engine stopped, then resumed power. This occurred 2 more times. The pilot tired to get to a road for a forced landing, but had to land in a flooded rice field. At touchdown, the airplane flipped forward to the inverted position. The airplane was demolished, but the commercial pilot was not injured. After recovery, the number four cylinder intake valve rocker box housing was found to be cracked.
Aircraft
- Registration
- N8938H
- Reported as
- Grumman G-164A
- Category
- Airplane
- Serial number
- 1366
- Airframe hours
- 6,092
- Engine
- P&W R-1340-AN1, 600 horsepower, reciprocating
- Damage
- Destroyed
- Flight
- Aerial application · Part 137
- Registered owner
- Patrick Aaron Young
- Airworthiness certificate
- Special, Restricted (Special)
- Last inspection
- Annual · December 17, 1989 · 280 hours before
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
- 43
- Certificate
- Commercial
- Airplane ratings
- Single-engine land
- Instrument ratings
- Helicopter, Airplane
- Medical
- Class 2, Valid Medical--no waivers/lim.
- Seat
- Center
- Flight hours
- 11,768 total · 5,500 in this make and model · 11,511 as pilot in command · 150 in the last 90 days · 100 in the last 30 days · 8 in the last 24 hours
Weather
- Conditions
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Wind
- 190° at 10 knots
- Visibility
- 7 statute miles
- Lowest ceiling
- None
- Temperature
- 84 °F
FAA reports on this event · 1
The FAA’s own accident and incident reports, matched to the aircraft by N-number and date.
Other investigations on N8938H · 1
Matched to the same aircraft by N-number and date.