- Date
- August 17, 1992, 18:20 local (23:20 UTC)
- Place
- Thibodaux, LA
- Injuries
- 1 minor
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Phase of flight
- Maneuvering
- Aircraft
- N8916HGrumman G-164
- Weather
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Status
- Completed · report September 14, 1993
- Report
- Approved by Office Director
- FAA report
- 19920817056169A
- Case key
- 18333
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 the wires.
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 pilot was spraying a cane field and on the seventh swath run struck powerline wires and descended uncontrolled to impact with the terrain. The pilot stated that he did not see the wires until the impact. He reported no mechanical failure to his airplane before the accident.
Aircraft
- Registration
- N8916H
- Reported as
- Grumman G-164
- Category
- Airplane
- Serial number
- 1613
- Airframe hours
- 6,240
- Engine
- P&W R-1340, 600 horsepower, reciprocating
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Aerial application · Part 137
- Operator
- Elfert, Philip I., doing business as Elfert Flying Service
- Registered owner
- O'Brien Flying Service
- Airworthiness certificate
- Special, Restricted (Special)
- Last inspection
- Annual · April 10, 1992 · 36 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
- 26
- Certificate
- Commercial
- Airplane ratings
- Single-engine land
- Medical
- Class 2, Valid Medical--no waivers/lim.
- Seat
- Center
- Flight hours
- 2,171 total · 782 in this make and model · 1,899 as pilot in command · 82 in the last 90 days · 81 in the last 30 days · 1 in the last 24 hours
Weather
- Conditions
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Wind
- Calm
- Lowest ceiling
- None
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 N8916H · 2
Matched to the same aircraft by N-number and date.