- Date
- September 20, 1994, 08:45 local (13:45 UTC)
- Place
- Mcgehee, AR
- Injuries
- 1 uninjured
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Phase of flight
- Maneuvering
- Aircraft
- N4549NAir Tractor AT-401
- Weather
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Status
- Completed · report May 4, 1995
- Report
- Approved by Office Director
- FAA report
- 19940920029149A
- Case key
- 19167
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 loss of engine power due to undetermined reasons. A factor was the unsuitable terrain.
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
During a swath run, the engine lost power. The pilot landed in a nearby field. During the landing roll the aircraft's main landing gear sank into the soft earth, nosed over and came to rest inverted. The spars of both wings were bent and the tail was damaged. The examination of the wreckage by an FAA inspector did not reveal any anomalies.
Factual narrative
On September 20, 1994, at 0845 central daylight time, an Air Tractor AT-401, N4549N, was substantially damaged during a forced landing near McGehee, Arkansas. The commercial pilot was not injured. Visual meteorological conditions prevailed for the aerial application flight.
The pilot reported the following information to a Federal Aviation Administration inspector. During a swath run, the engine lost power. He made a turn to an adjacent field to land. As he landed, the landing gear sank into the soft earth and nosed over, and came to rest inverted.
An examination of the airplane by the FAA inspector revealed that the spars of both wings were bent and the empennage section sustained structural damage. The examination of the engine failed to reveal any anomalies.
Aircraft
- Registration
- N4549N
- Reported as
- Air Tractor AT-401
- Category
- Airplane
- Engine
- P&W R-1340, 600 horsepower, reciprocating
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Aerial application · Part 137
- Registered owner
- Four W Flying Service Inc
- Airworthiness certificate
- Special, Restricted (Special)
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
- Certificate
- Commercial
- Airplane ratings
- Single-engine land
- Medical
- Class 2, Valid Medical--w/ waivers/lim
- Seat
- Center
- Flight hours
- 1,350 total
Weather
- Conditions
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Wind
- 40° at 5 knots
- Visibility
- 7 statute miles
- Lowest ceiling
- None
- Temperature
- 70 °F, dew point 59 °F
- Altimeter
- 30.00 inHg
- Observed at
- PBF, 48 nm away
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 N4549N · 1
Matched to the same aircraft by N-number and date.