Air Tractor AT-401 N4508Y

Summary

On 13 July 2000 at about 14:15 local time, a Air Tractor AT-401 registered N4508Y, operated by Farmers Aerial Service, Inc., was involved in an accident near Ripley, California, United States. One person was on board and nobody was injured. The aircraft was substantially damaged. The NTSB has published a probable cause for this accident; it is quoted in full below.

Date

13 July 2000 at 14:15

Classification

Accident

Location

Ripley, California, United States

Coordinates

33.7503, -114.5106

Aircraft

Air Tractor AT-401

Registration

N4508Y

Category

Airplane

Engines

1

Operator

Farmers Aerial Service, Inc.

Operating rule

Part 137: Agricultural

Purpose of flight

Aerial Application

Phase of flight

Not recorded

Route

Blythe → Unknown

Aircraft damage

Substantial

Weather

VMC

Light

Day

NTSB number

LAX00LA271

Nobody was injured.

A loss of engine power due to the separation of a connecting rod from the crankshaft.

Quoted verbatim from the NTSB record. This site does not paraphrase or interpret it.

Read the full NTSB narrative

A partial loss of engine power was experienced during an aerial application flight. During the pilot's attempted forced landing in a cotton field, the airplane collided with a dirt berm and nosed over. An examination of the engine revealed that the connecting rod associated with the No. 7 cylinder had separated from the crankshaft. The connecting rod pieces were severely peened and damaged, and the mode of separation could not be determined. No other evidence of any preexisting failures or malfunctions was noted. The airplane engine's total time was 5,267 hours. It had been operated for 475 hours since receiving its last major overhaul.

Quoted verbatim from the NTSB record.