# NTSB FTW99LA182: Grumman G-164B, N6703Q, Iowa, LA, July 6, 1999 - Type: NTSB accident investigation - Classification: Accident · Minor injuries · Limited investigation · Final report - Date: July 6, 1999, 07:22 local (12:22 UTC) - Place: Iowa, LA - Coordinates: 30.229246, -93.009727 (estimated) - Nearby events: https://openairdocs.org/map.md?lat=30.2292&lon=-93.0097&mi=10 - Phase of flight: [Maneuvering](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb-phases/450) (OpenAirDocs' grouping) - Highest injury: Minor injuries - Injuries: 1 minor - Status: Completed, report September 7, 2000 - Report: Approved by Office Director - NTSB case key (mKey): 46723 - NTSB case page: https://web.ntsb.gov/investigations/?ntsbnumber=FTW99LA182 - NTSB report (PDF, downloads): https://data.ntsb.gov/carol-repgen/api/Aviation/ReportMain/GenerateNewestReport/46723/pdf - Page: https://openairdocs.org/ntsb/FTW99LA182 ## Probable cause The pilot's failure to maintain clearance with the crops being sprayed. A factor was the pilot's diverted attention. ## Sequence of events In NTSB's coding before 2008 (https://www.ntsb.gov/GILS/Documents/codman.pdf). - In flight collision with terrain/water, maneuvering - aerial application - clearance - not maintained, pilot in command (cause) - diverted attention, pilot in command (contributing factor) - Nose over, other ## Analysis During an aerial application flight, the main landing gear of the agricultural airplane contacted a rice field, and the wheels bogged down in the field. The airplane nosed over and came to rest in the inverted position. The commercial pilot was spraying the field on an east-west direction. The operator stated that the field being sprayed was bordered on the south by a highway that, due to a construction detour, was heavily traveled by trucks. The wind on the morning of the accident was from the northeast. He added that the pilot was trying to avoid over spraying the vehicles on the highway, and his attention was momentarily diverted from keeping his clearance from the field being sprayed. The 1,450-hour pilot had accumulated 925 flight hours in the accident airplane. The pilot had flown 277 hours in the preceding 90 days, with 141 hours within the last 30 days. ## Factual narrative On July 6, 1999, at 0722 central daylight time, a Grumman G-164B agricultural airplane, N6703Q, was substantially damaged upon collision with crops and terrain while maneuvering near Iowa, Louisiana. The non-instrument rated commercial pilot, sole occupant of the airplane, sustained minor injuries. The airplane was owned and operated by O'Brien Flying Service of Iowa, Louisiana. Visual meteorological conditions prevailed for the 14 Code of Federal Regulations Part 137 aerial application flight for which a flight plan was not filed. The airplane departed from the operator's airstrip, approximately 10 minutes prior to the accident. The operator reported that the biplane was dispatched with a load of 225 gallons of fungicide to spray a flooded rice field located about 3 miles west of his airstrip. While performing a spray pass on an easterly heading, at an airspeed of 100 mph, the airplane's main landing gear came in contact with the rice field. The operator added that "the wheels bogged down in the field," and the airplane nosed over coming to rest in the inverted position. The operator stated that the field being sprayed was bordered on the south by a highway that, due to a construction detour, was heavily traveled by trucks. The wind on the morning of the accident was from the northeast. He added that the pilot was trying to avoid over spraying the vehicles on the highway, and his attention was momentarily diverted from keeping his clearance from the field being sprayed. The application passes are normally performed at 6 to 7 feet above the crops. The 1,450-hour pilot, who had accumulated 925 flight hours in the accident airplane, did not report any mechanical problems or anomalies prior to the accident. In the enclosed NTSB Form 6120.1/2, the pilot reported that he had flown 277 hours in the preceding 90 days, with 141 hours within the last 30 days. Examination of the wreckage by the operator revealed that all four wings and the empennage sustained structural damage. ## Aircraft - Registration: [N6703Q](https://openairdocs.org/deregistered/N6703Q-2006-06-28), registration cancelled 2006-06-28, S/N 217B, built 1977 (OpenAirDocs) - Reported make and model: Grumman G-164B - Registry model: [Grumman Acft ENG Cor-Schweizer G-164B](https://openairdocs.org/model/grumman-acft-eng-cor-schweizer-g-164b) (registry code 3952802) (OpenAirDocs) - Registry engine: [Pratt & Whitney R-985 series](https://openairdocs.org/engine/pratt-whitney-r-985-series) (registry code 52008, reciprocating) (OpenAirDocs) - Category: Airplane - Serial number: 217B - Airframe hours: 7976 - Engines: P&W R-1340-AN1 600 horsepower reciprocating - Damage: Substantial damage - Flight: Aerial application, Part 137 - Registered owner: Zoren O'Brien - Airworthiness certificate: Special, Restricted (Special) - Last inspection: Annual, December 1, 1998, 401 hours before ## Flight crew As NTSB recorded them. NTSB leaves out names. - Pilot; age 52; commercial; airplane ratings: single-engine land; medical: class 2, valid medical--w/ waivers/lim; seat: center; flight hours: 1,450 total, 925 in this make and model ## Weather - Conditions: Visual (VMC), Day - Wind: 360° at 5 knots - Visibility: 7 statute miles - Lowest ceiling: 800 ft broken - Temperature: 75 °F, dew point 72 °F - Altimeter: 30.00 inHg - Observed at: CWF, 22 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 19990706008379A](https://openairdocs.org/incident/19990706008379A), Jul 6, 1999: Scwzer G164B, Iowa, LA, Substantial damage. Acft crashed into a rice field during aerial application, other circumstances are unknown. (From .4) during an aerial application flight, the main landing gear… 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.