# NTSB FTW99LA152: Air Tractor AT-502, N4533H, Cherry Valley, AR, May 28, 1999 - Type: NTSB accident investigation - Classification: Accident · No injuries · Limited investigation · Final report - Date: May 28, 1999, 12:50 local (17:50 UTC) - Place: Cherry Valley, AR - Coordinates: 35.399501, -90.750045 (estimated) - Nearby events: https://openairdocs.org/map.md?lat=35.3995&lon=-90.7500&mi=10 - Phase of flight: [Takeoff](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb-phases/300) (OpenAirDocs' grouping) - Highest injury: No injuries - Injuries: 1 uninjured - Status: Completed, report September 7, 2000 - Report: Approved by Office Director - NTSB case key (mKey): 46423 - NTSB case page: https://web.ntsb.gov/investigations/?ntsbnumber=FTW99LA152 - NTSB report (PDF, downloads): https://data.ntsb.gov/carol-repgen/api/Aviation/ReportMain/GenerateNewestReport/46423/pdf - NTSB docket: https://data.ntsb.gov/Docket?ProjectID=46423 - Page: https://openairdocs.org/ntsb/FTW99LA152 ## Probable cause The pilot's inadvertent stall due to his evasive maneuver to avoid colliding with a truck on the runway. A factor was the runway incursion by the truck. ## Sequence of events In NTSB's coding before 2008 (https://www.ntsb.gov/GILS/Documents/codman.pdf). - Abrupt maneuver, takeoff - roll/run - object - vehicle (contributing factor) - maneuver to avoid obstructions - performed, pilot in command (cause) - Loss of control - in flight, takeoff - initial climb - stall - inadvertent, pilot in command (cause) - In flight collision with terrain/water, descent - uncontrolled ## Analysis The agricultural airplane stalled and impacted terrain after the pilot prematurely pulled the airplane off the ground during the takeoff roll to avoid colliding with a truck that entered the airstrip. The pilot reported that the elevated dirt airstrip was also used as an access road. The hopper was filled with a load of rice seed to be dispensed on a nearby field, and the airplane had been topped off with fuel. The airplane's takeoff ground roll for the previous flight had been much shorter due to the lighter load and cooler temperature. The 14,232-hour pilot reported that soon after the tail wheel came off the ground, he observed a white pickup entering the airstrip/road. The driver of the pickup truck, who was also the farmer whose fields were being seeded, had observed previous takeoffs, but was not aware of how the airplane was loaded for this flight. ## Factual narrative On May 28, 1999, at 1250 central daylight time, an Air Tractor AT-502 agricultural airplane, N4533H, was substantially damaged following an abrupt maneuver to avoid a vehicle during takeoff from an airstrip near Cherry Valley, Arkansas. The instrument rated commercial pilot, sole occupant of the airplane, was not injured. The airplane was registered to Riddell Flying Service, Inc., of West Helena, Arkansas, and operated by Burnette Aviation, Inc., of Hickory Ridge, Arkansas. Visual meteorological conditions prevailed for the Title 14 CFR Part 137 aerial application flight for which a flight plan was not filed. The flight was originating at the time of the accident. The pilot reported to an FAA inspector and on the enclosed NTSB Form 6120.1/2, that he attempted to takeoff to the north from an elevated dirt airstrip which is also used as an access road. The pilot stated that the hopper was filled with a load of rice seed to be dispensed on a nearby field. The pilot further stated that the turbine powered tail wheel equipped airplane was also topped off with fuel prior to the accident flight. The pilot added that the takeoff ground roll for the airplane "had been much shorter on the 2 previous flights due to the lighter loads and the cooler temperatures." The 14,232-hour pilot reported that during the takeoff roll, soon after the tail wheel came off of the ground, he observed a white pickup entering the airstrip/road from a west cross-levee road. The driver of the pickup truck, who was the farmer whose fields were being seeded, had observed previous takeoffs but was not aware of how the airplane was loaded. As the airplane closed to within a few feet of the pickup truck, the pilot intentionally "pulled the aircraft off the strip to the east" in an attempt to avoid colliding with the truck and the driver. The pilot added that the airplane immediately stalled and fell into the rice field below the elevated road/strip. The airplane came to rest in a flooded rice field, approximately 25 yards short of the cross levee where the truck and the driver were sitting. Examination of the airplane by the owner and the operator revealed structural damage to the right wing and the empennage. The right main landing gear and the tail wheel were found separated from the airframe. ## Aircraft - Registration: [N4533H](https://openairdocs.org/deregistered/N4533H-2003-03-18), registration cancelled 2003-03-18, S/N 502-0105 (OpenAirDocs) - Reported make and model: Air Tractor AT-502 - Registry model: [Air Tractor AT-502](https://openairdocs.org/model/air-tractor-at-502) (registry code 0390303) (OpenAirDocs) - Registry engine: [Pratt & Whitney Canada PT6A-60A](https://openairdocs.org/engine/pratt-whitney-canada-pt6a-60a) (registry code 52043, turbo-prop) (OpenAirDocs) - Category: Airplane - Serial number: 502-0105 - Engines: P&W PT6A-15AG 680 horsepower turbo prop - Damage: Substantial damage - Flight: Aerial application, Part 137 - Operator: Michael A. Burnette, doing business as Burnette Aviation Inc. - Registered owner: Riddell Flying Service Inc. - Airworthiness certificate: Special, Restricted (Special) - Airport: NONE ## Flight crew As NTSB recorded them. NTSB leaves out names. - Pilot; age 44; commercial; airplane ratings: multi-engine land, single-engine land; instrument ratings: airplane; medical: class 2, valid medical--w/ waivers/lim; seat: center; flight hours: 14,232 total, 620 in this make and model, 14,109 as pilot in command, 300 in the last 90 days, 200 in the last 30 days, 8 in the last 24 hours ## Weather - Conditions: Visual (VMC), Day - Wind: 100° at 5 knots - Visibility: 10 statute miles - Lowest ceiling: none - Temperature: 81 °F, dew point 48 °F - Altimeter: 30.00 inHg - Observed at: JBR, 27 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 (OpenAirDocs). - [Accident 19990528006059A](https://openairdocs.org/incident/19990528006059A), May 28, 1999: Airtrc AT502, Cherry Valley, AR, Substantial damage. Acft was departing private strip 6 miles w of Cherry Valley ar. Unable to fly out of ground effect, stalled, collided with terrain just north of strip.… ## Other investigations on N4533H (1) From the NTSB's public API. Aircraft are matched to registry aircraft by N-number and event date, checked against the reported serial number, make and model; the registry's history has gaps, so older matches can be wrong. Compare the reported make and model. - [NTSB FTW97LA012](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb/FTW97LA012), Oct 8, 1996: Air Tractor AT-502 (N4533H), Idalou, TX, substantial damage. Probable cause: the pilot's improper planning/decision, which resulted in an overrun during takeoff and an encounter with cotton (crop) and rough/uneven terrain. Factors relating to the accident were: the excessive… ## Docket (1 files) The files NTSB released with the investigation on April 19, 2022, on NTSB's docket system: https://data.ntsb.gov/Docket?ProjectID=46423. 555 KB in all. - Pilot-operator aircraft accident report NTSB form 61201-2 (item 1, PDF, 6 pages, 555 KB): https://data.ntsb.gov/Docket/Document/docBLOB?ID=13614536&FileExtension=pdf&FileName=Pilot-Operator%20Aircraft%20Accident%20Report%20NTSB%20Form%2061201-2-Master-Rel.pdf From the NTSB's public API. Aircraft are matched to registry aircraft by N-number and event date, checked against the reported serial number, make and model; the registry's history has gaps, so older matches can be wrong. Compare the reported make and model. --- OpenAirDocs.org is an independent research project of [Contrail Labs](https://contraillabs.com/). It is not affiliated with the FAA or the NTSB. Source documents are U.S. government works in the public domain.