Air Tractor AT-400A N31619

Summary

On 9 June 1983 at about 22:20 local time, a Air Tractor AT-400A registered N31619 was involved in an accident near Lane City, Texas, United States. One person was on board and one died. The aircraft was destroyed. No probable cause statement is available for this record.

Date

9 June 1983 at 22:20

Classification

Accident

Location

Lane City, Texas, United States

Coordinates

29.1897, -95.9903

Aircraft

Air Tractor AT-400A

Registration

N31619

Category

Airplane

Engines

1

Operator

Not recorded

Operating rule

Part 137: Agricultural

Purpose of flight

Aerial Application

Phase of flight

Not recorded

Route

Wharton → Unknown

Aircraft damage

Destroyed

Weather

VMC

Light

Day

NTSB number

FTW83FA270

1 person died.

The NTSB has not published a probable cause for this record. No probable cause statement is present in the source data.

Nothing about the cause is stated here that is not in the source record.

Read the full NTSB narrative

THE PLT WAS LEADING A FLT OF 2 ACFT ON AN AERIAL APPLICATION MISSION. THE PLT OF THE 2ND ACFT STATED THAT AT THE END OF A SWATH RUN, THE LEAD ACFT PULLED UP TO AN ALMOST VERTICAL ATTITUDE & TO AN ALT OF BETWEEN 300 & 400 FT AGL. AT THAT TIME, THE PLANE STALLED & CONTINUED OVER ONTO ITS BACK, THEN ENTERED AN INVERTED SPIN. REPORTEDLY, THE SPIN CONTINUED FOR ABOUT 1 1/2 TURNS UNTIL THE ACFT IMPACTED THE GROUND IN A STEEP NOSE DOWN, SLIGHTLY INVERTED, ATTITUDE. AN INVESTIGATION REVEALED THAT THE PLT WAS HIGHLY QUALIFIED IN AG OPERATIONS, BUT HAD ONLY RECENTLY STARTED FLYING TURBINED POWER ACFT. REPORTEDLY, HE HAD RECEIVED NO FORMAL TRAINING IN THIS MODEL OF THE ACFT NOR IN THE OPERATING CHARACTERISTICS OF TURBINE ENGS. AN EXAM OF THE WRECKAGE WAS MADE, BUT NO PREIMPACT, MECHANICAL FAILURE OR MALFUNCTION WAS FOUND.

Quoted verbatim from the NTSB record.