Air Tractor AT-502B N6003G

Summary

On 29 August 2007 at about 03:00 local time, a Air Tractor AT-502B registered N6003G, operated by Cyr Aviation, was involved in an accident near Blythe, 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

29 August 2007 at 03:00

Classification

Accident

Location

Blythe, California, United States

Nearest airport

Cyr Ariport (56CL)

Coordinates

33.5875, -114.6064

Aircraft

Air Tractor AT-502B

Registration

N6003G

Category

Airplane

Engines

1

Operator

Cyr Aviation

Operating rule

Part 137: Agricultural

Purpose of flight

Aerial Application

Phase of flight

Not recorded

Route

Blythe → Blythe

Aircraft damage

Substantial

Weather

VMC

Light

Dusk

NTSB number

SEA07LA242

Nobody was injured.

The pilot's failure to maintain adequate airspeed which resulted in a stall. A contributing factor was the high density altitude.

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

Read the full NTSB narrative

During the takeoff roll on the 2,400 foot long asphalt airstrip, the 7,650-hour pilot noticed the airplane was very sluggish about 60% of the way down the runway, and not being able to stop he elected to add full power. The aircraft subsequently became airborne in ground effect; however, it settled and impacted terrain on the other side of a crowned road past the end of the runway. After impacting the ground the airplane veered to the right 180 degrees before coming to rest upright. The pilot said the accident could have been prevented if he had reduced his load and had stopped flying when it became too hot. The density altitude was calculated at 3,672 feet based on an outside air temperature of 41 degrees Celsius, a dew point of 12 degrees Celsius, and an altimeter setting of 29.65 inches of Mercury.

Quoted verbatim from the NTSB record.