- Date
- August 11, 1995, 08:30 local (13:30 UTC)
- Place
- Lake City, AR
- Injuries
- 1 uninjured
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Phase of flight
- Maneuvering
- Aircraft
- N3095WAyres S2R-T34
- Weather
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Status
- Completed · report November 30, 1995
- Report
- Approved by Office Director
- FAA report
- 19950811048589A
- Case key
- 19542
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 with the transmission 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
A commercial pilot collided with high tension power lines while on his last aerial application pass of a 160 acre cotton field. The outer portion of the right wing and a section of the empennage separated from the airframe; however, the pilot was able to fly to a nearby airport without further incident.
Factual narrative
On August 11, 1995, at 0830 central daylight time, an Ayres S2R- T34, N3095W, was substantially damaged upon impact with wires while maneuvering near Lake City, Arkansas. The commercial pilot was not injured. The aircraft was being operated on an aerial application flight by Needhem Flying Service Inc., under 14 CFR Part 137 when the accident occurred. Visual meteorological conditions prevailed for the flight and no flight plan was filed.
According to the Federal Aviation Administrator (FAA) inspector, the airplane impacted high tension power lines while on an aerial application flight. The outer portion of the right wing and a section of the empennage separated from the airframe; however, the pilot was able to fly to a nearby airport without further incident.
In a telephone interview, the pilot stated that he had flown under, over, and around the power lines and its supporting towers several times while spraying his assigned 160 acres of cotton. During his last pass, which he termed "his clean up pass", he collided with the wires. There were no reported eyewitnesses to this accident.
Numerous attempts by the investigator-in-charge to obtain a completed Pilot/Operator Report from either the pilot or the operator were unsuccessful.
Aircraft
- Registration
- N3095W
- Reported as
- Ayres S2R-T34
- Category
- Airplane
- Serial number
- T34-119
- Engine
- P&W PT6A-34AG, 750 horsepower, turbo prop
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Aerial application · Part 137
- Registered owner
- Brenda K. Harmon
- 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
- 4,000 total · 6 in the last 24 hours
Weather
- Conditions
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Visibility
- 7 statute miles
- 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.