Air Tractor AT 401B N9071Z
13 August 2014 · Cimarron, Kansas, United States · Serious injuries
Summary
On 13 August 2014 at about 18:30 local time, a Air Tractor AT 401B registered N9071Z, operated by Erhart Aerial Spraying, was involved in an accident near Cimarron, Kansas, United States. One person was on board and one was seriously injured. The aircraft was substantially damaged. The NTSB has published a probable cause for this accident; it is quoted in full below.
The record
- Date
- at 18:30
- Classification
- Accident
- Location
- Cimarron, Kansas, United States
- Nearest airport
- Dodge City Regional (DDC)
- Coordinates
- 37.9400, -100.3100
- Aircraft
- Air Tractor AT 401B
- Registration
- N9071Z
- Category
- Airplane
- Year built
- 2001
- Engines
- 1
- Operator
- Erhart Aerial Spraying
- Operating rule
- Part 137: Agricultural
- Purpose of flight
- Aerial Application
- Phase of flight
- Not recorded
- Route
- Dodge City → Dodge City
- Aircraft damage
- Substantial
- Weather
- VMC
- Light
- Day
- NTSB number
- CEN14CA427
People
1 person was seriously injured.
| On board | Died | Serious | Minor | Uninjured |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 |
Probable cause
The pilot's failure to maintain clearance from the antenna guy wire during an aerial application pass.
Quoted verbatim from the NTSB record. This site does not paraphrase or interpret it.
Read the full NTSB narrative
The pilot reported that he was setting up to spray a corn field bordered by radio antennas. He had sprayed the field previously and planned to use the same pattern this time. However, on his initial pass, he focused on the inner guy wire anchor point, which caused him to inadvertently fly between the inner and outer guy wires. When he started to pull-up, the airplane struck the outer wire, separating 7 feet of the left wing from the airplane. The pilot was able to maintain control and ultimately returned to the departure airport. However, the airplane rolled to the left when he reduced power on landing and he lost control at that time. The pilot stated that there were no problems with the airplane prior to the accident; the engine and flight controls were performing normally before the impact with the guy wire.
Quoted verbatim from the NTSB record.
Other Air Tractor AT-401B accidents
| Date | Aircraft | Location | Operator | Outcome | Died |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 18 Jul 2014 | Air Tractor AT 401B | Ellis, Kansas, United States | Frontier Agricultural Service Inc | Fatal | 1 |
| 1 Sep 2021 | Air Tractor AT-401B | Storm Lake, Iowa, United States | Barts Flying Service Inc | No injuries | - |
| 15 Jun 2023 | Air Tractor AT-401B | Holyoke, Colorado, United States | Steggs Flying Service, Inc | No injuries | - |
| 4 Sep 2004 | Air Tractor AT-401B | Bainbridge, Georgia, United States | East River Flying Service LLC | Fatal | 1 |
| 22 Jul 2002 | Air Tractor AT-401B | Pratt, Kansas, United States | - | No injuries | - |
| 30 Nov 2001 | Air Tractor AT-401B | Las Vegas, Nevada, United States | - | No injuries | - |
Other accidents in this area
| Date | Aircraft | Location | Operator | Outcome | Died |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 22 Apr 2014 | Air Tractor AT 502B | Garfield, Kansas, United States | - | Fatal | 1 |
| 8 Jun 2014 | Schrieber Robert L P 70 | Great Bend, Kansas, United States | - | Fatal | 2 |
| 23 Feb 2014 | Van's RV-9A | Tribune, Kansas, United States | - | Fatal | 1 |
| 13 Feb 2014 | Cessna 172R | Ellsworth, Kansas, United States | Kansas State University | No injuries | - |
| 20 Jun 2014 | Cessna E162 | Wichita, Kansas, United States | Cessna Employees Flying Club | No injuries | - |
| 19 May 2014 | Silvaire LUSCOMBE 8E | Douglass, Kansas, United States | Oneil Ashley J | No injuries | - |