# NTSB MIA99LA229: Air Tractor AT-402, N1510Z, Holly Bluff, MS, August 18, 1999 - Type: NTSB accident investigation - Classification: Accident · Minor injuries · Limited investigation · Final report - Date: August 18, 1999, 18:45 local (23:45 UTC) - Place: Holly Bluff, MS - Coordinates: 32.769683, -90.709884 (estimated) - Nearby events: https://openairdocs.org/map.md?lat=32.7697&lon=-90.7099&mi=10 - Phase of flight: [Maneuvering](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb-phases/450) (OpenAirDocs' grouping) - Highest injury: Minor injuries - Injuries: 1 minor - Status: Completed, report December 4, 2000 - Report: Approved by Office Director - NTSB case key (mKey): 47124 - NTSB case page: https://web.ntsb.gov/investigations/?ntsbnumber=MIA99LA229 - NTSB report (PDF, downloads): https://data.ntsb.gov/carol-repgen/api/Aviation/ReportMain/GenerateNewestReport/47124/pdf - Page: https://openairdocs.org/ntsb/MIA99LA229 ## Probable cause The pilot's failure to maintain visual separation between his airplane and a tree while maneuvering during aerial application and the subsequent collision with the tree and the terrain. A factor in the accident was the sunglare on the airplane's windscreen. ## Sequence of events In NTSB's coding before 2008 (https://www.ntsb.gov/GILS/Documents/codman.pdf). - In flight collision with object, maneuvering - aerial application - object - tree(s) - visual separation - inadequate, pilot in command (cause) - light condition - sunglare (contributing factor) - In flight collision with terrain/water, maneuvering - aerial application ## Analysis The aerial application airplane's right wing collided with a tree while working a pattern that was oriented in an east-west direction, causing the airplane to impact the terrain and cartwheel. The pilot reported that during insecticide application some overspray accumulated on the windscreen, leaving an oily residue that obscured his vision when his direction of flight headed into the sun. ## Factual narrative On August 18, 1999, about 1845 central daylight time, an Air Tractor AT-402, N1510Z, registered to Producers Flying, Inc., operating as a Title 14 CFR Part 137 aerial application flight, crashed while spraying insecticide near Holly Bluff, Mississippi. Visual meteorological conditions prevailed and no flight plan was filed. The airplane received substantial damage and the commercially-rated pilot sustained minor injuries. The flight originated from a private airstrip near Holly Bluff about 45 minutes before the accident. According to the pilot, he had gotten overspray of the insecticide on his windshield, and when his spray run took him toward the direction of the sun, his vision became obscured and the airplane's right wing collided with a tree. The airplane rolled 1 1/4 times, impacted the ground right wing down, and cartwheeled. In statements to the FAA, the pilot added that when his windscreen became obscured, he used the airplane's windscreen washer system to remove the overspray, and the collision with the tree was a matter of preoccupation with the application run as well as blurred vision through the windscreen. Postcrash examination of the wreckage and interview of the pilot by an FAA inspector confirmed the damage and minor injuries, and that no abnormalities or malfunctions of the engine or airframe existed at the time of the accident. ## Aircraft - Registration: [N1510Z](https://openairdocs.org/deregistered/N1510Z-2004-09-23), registration cancelled 2004-09-23, S/N 402-0829, built 1991 (OpenAirDocs) - Reported make and model: Air Tractor AT-402 - Registry model: [Air Tractor AT-402](https://openairdocs.org/model/air-tractor-at-402) (registry code 0390205) (OpenAirDocs) - Registry engine: [Pratt & Whitney PT6A series](https://openairdocs.org/engine/pratt-whitney-pt6a-series) (registry code 52034, reciprocating) (OpenAirDocs) - Category: Airplane - Serial number: 402-0829 - Airframe hours: 3335 - Engines: P&W PT6-15AG 680 horsepower turbo prop - Damage: Substantial damage - Fire: On-Ground - Flight: Aerial application, Part 137 - Registered owner: Producers Flying,Inc. - Airworthiness certificate: Special, Restricted (Special) - Last inspection: Annual, May 17, 1999, 312 hours before - Departed: HOLLY BLUFF, MS ## Flight crew As NTSB recorded them. NTSB leaves out names. - Pilot; age 28; flight instructor, commercial; airplane ratings: single-engine land, multi-engine land; instrument ratings: airplane; medical: class 2, valid medical--w/ waivers/lim; seat: front; flight hours: 2,642 total, 780 in this make and model, 1,730 as pilot in command, 250 in the last 90 days, 100 in the last 30 days, 5 in the last 24 hours ## Weather - Conditions: Visual (VMC), Dusk - Wind: 10° at 6 knots - Visibility: 10 statute miles - Lowest ceiling: none - Temperature: 99 °F, dew point 63 °F - Altimeter: 29.00 inHg - Observed at: JAN, 44 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 19990818012649A](https://openairdocs.org/incident/19990818012649A), Aug 18, 1999: Airtrc AT402, Holly Bluff, MS, Substantial damage. Acft was involved with aerial application when its right wing struck a tree, and the acft struck the ground and cartwheeled, other circumstances are unknown.… 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.