- Date
- May 30, 1996, 14:30 local (21:30 UTC)
- Place
- Corning, CA
- Injuries
- 1 serious
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Phase of flight
- Maneuvering
- Aircraft
- N3626DSchweizer G-164B
- Weather
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Status
- Completed · report January 17, 1997
- Report
- Approved by Office Director
- FAA report
- 19960530012079A
- Case key
- 29456
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 misjudged the airplane's clearance from wires he was flying beneath. A contributing factor was the presence of light turbulence.
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 seeding a field and began over the east side working his way toward the west. During his last pass, he made a left descending turn to fly beneath wires. The pilot suspected that turbulence raised the airplane's right wing and it collided with a wire. The airplane crashed into the field and came to rest upside down. The wind was from the north, between 2 and 5 knots.
Factual narrative
On May 30, 1996, at 1430 hours Pacific daylight time, a Schweizer G-164B, N3626D, operated by AVAG, Inc., collided with a power line while performing a rice seeding operation during an aerial application flight. The airplane came to rest upside down in a field near Corning, California. Visual meteorological conditions prevailed. The airplane was substantially damaged and the commercial pilot was seriously injured. The flight originated from a private airstrip about 1.5 miles west of the field about 1415.
According to the pilot, he began the seeding operation over the east side of the field and worked his way toward the west. During his last pass, he made a left descending turn to fly beneath wires. In the pilot's completed accident report, he indicated light turbulence raised the airplane's right wing and it contacted a wire.
The local wind was from the north, between 2 and 5 knots. No mechanical malfunctions or failures were reported.
Aircraft
- Registration
- N3626D
- Reported as
- Schweizer G-164B
- Category
- Airplane
- Serial number
- 717B
- Airframe hours
- 8,903
- Engine
- P&W PT6A-15G, 680 horsepower, turbo prop
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Aerial application · Part 137
- Operator
- Avag, Inc.
- Registered owner
- Bitcom, Inc.
- Airworthiness certificate
- Special, Restricted (Special)
- Last inspection
- Annual · June 22, 1996 · 58 hours before
- Departed
- CA
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
- 56
- Certificate
- Commercial
- Airplane ratings
- Single-engine land
- Medical
- Class 2, Valid Medical--w/ waivers/lim
- Seat
- Center
- Flight hours
- 15,500 total · 330 in this make and model · 345 in the last 90 days
Weather
- Conditions
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Wind
- 360° at 2 knots, gusting 5
- Visibility
- 15 statute miles
- Lowest ceiling
- None
- Temperature
- 81 °F
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 N3626D · 1
Matched to the same aircraft by N-number and date.