Rockwell S 2R N9646A

Summary

On 19 August 2014 at about 22:40 local time, a Rockwell S 2R registered N9646A, operated by Benson Air AG Inc, was involved in an accident near Kerkhoven, Minnesota, 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

19 August 2014 at 22:40

Classification

Accident

Location

Kerkhoven, Minnesota, United States

Coordinates

45.1672, -95.3083

Aircraft

Rockwell S 2R

Registration

N9646A

Category

Airplane

Operator

Benson Air AG Inc

Operating rule

Part 137: Agricultural

Purpose of flight

Aerial Application

Phase of flight

Not recorded

Route

Benson → Benson

Aircraft damage

Substantial

Weather

VMC

Light

Day

NTSB number

CEN14CA442

Nobody was injured.

The pilot failure to see and avoid the guide wire during the aerial application flight.

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

Read the full NTSB narrative

The pilot stated he flew over the field to identify obstructions prior to beginning the spray passes. He noted a hog farm and powerline wires on the southwest side of the field so he decided to spray the field in a north/south pattern. The pilot began spraying on the east side of the field, and during the second pass, the airplane contacted a guide wire that extended from the row of powerlines, which paralleled his flight path. The pilot stated he did not see the guide wire while looking for obstructions. Upon hitting the wire, the engine lost power and the propeller appeared to feather. The pilot tried to gain altitude and was able to dump the remaining chemical load prior to the airplane impacting a corn field about ¾ of a mile from where it contacted the wire. The impact resulted in substantial damage to the fuselage. The pilot reported there was no mechanical failure/malfunction of the airplane prior to contacting the wire.

Quoted verbatim from the NTSB record.