Grumman G164 N3631Z

Summary

On 20 August 2019 at about 14:15 local time, a Grumman G164 registered N3631Z, operated by Werth Aerial Spraying Inc, was involved in an accident near Hays, Kansas, United States. One person was on board and one died. The aircraft was destroyed. The NTSB has published a probable cause for this accident; it is quoted in full below.

Date

20 August 2019 at 14:15

Classification

Accident

Location

Hays, Kansas, United States

Nearest airport

Werth Private Airstrip (N/A)

Coordinates

38.7261, -99.3411

Aircraft

Grumman G164

Registration

N3631Z

Category

Airplane

Year built

1985

Engines

1

Operator

Werth Aerial Spraying Inc

Operating rule

Part 137: Agricultural

Purpose of flight

Aerial Application

Phase of flight

Not recorded

Route

Hays → Hays

Aircraft damage

Destroyed

Weather

VMC

Light

Day

NTSB number

CEN19FA278

1 person died.

The pilot's exceedance of the airplane's critical angle of attack, which resulted in an aerodynamic stall.

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

Read the full NTSB narrative

The pilot was performing an agricultural application flight, and the airplane was observed departing a private airstrip to the east toward a field west of the airstrip. The airplane impacted terrain in a steep, nose-down attitude. A postimpact fire ensued. There were no witnesses to the accident. Impact signatures and twisting of the wreckage were indicative of a nose-low spin, consistent with an aerodynamic stall . Flight control continuity could not be verified due to fire damage, but no anomalies were noted with the airframe and engine that would have precluded normal operation. The pilot's toxicology tests results showed no drug or alcohol use. Thus, it is likely that aerodynamic stall resulted from the pilot allowing the airplane to exceed its critical angle of attack during a turn.

Quoted verbatim from the NTSB record.