Air Tractor AT 502 N4509S

Summary

On 10 July 2018 at about 21:45 local time, a Air Tractor AT 502 registered N4509S, operated by Olsem Aerial Application Services Llc, was involved in an accident near De Land, Illinois, 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

10 July 2018 at 21:45

Classification

Accident

Location

De Land, Illinois, United States

Nearest airport

Flying Illini (IL80)

Coordinates

40.1097, -88.6831

Aircraft

Air Tractor AT 502

Registration

N4509S

Category

Airplane

Year built

1990

Engines

1

Operator

Olsem Aerial Application Services Llc

Operating rule

Part 137: Agricultural

Purpose of flight

Aerial Application

Phase of flight

Not recorded

Route

De Land → De Land

Aircraft damage

Substantial

Weather

VMC

Light

Day

NTSB number

GAA18CA415

Nobody was injured.

The pilot’s selection of unsuitable terrain for landing in crosswind conditions, which resulted in the airplane inadvertently becoming airborne and a subsequent hard landing and loss of directional control.

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

Read the full NTSB narrative

The pilot reported that, after an agricultural application flight, during the landing roll in a rain shower and with a crosswind, the tailwheel-equipped airplane hit a "bump" and became airborne. He added that the airplane was slow, drifted left, and touched down hard. Subsequently, the airplane exited the runway and ground looped. The pilot reported that he should have landed farther down the runway to avoid the bumps that caused the airplane to become airborne. The airplane sustained substantial damage to the fuselage, empennage, and left wing. The pilot reported that there were no preaccident mechanical failures or malfunctions with the airplane that would have precluded normal operation. An automated weather observation system located about 19 nautical miles from the accident site reported that, about the time of the accident, the wind was from 260° at 12 knots. The pilot landed the airplane on runway 18.

Quoted verbatim from the NTSB record.