Air Tractor AT-802 N363BG

Summary

On 25 July 2021 at about 12:45 local time, a Air Tractor AT-802 registered N363BG, operated by Old River Flying Service LLC, was involved in an accident near Benoit, Mississippi, United States. One person was on board and one died. The aircraft was substantially damaged. The NTSB has published a probable cause for this accident; it is quoted in full below.

Date

25 July 2021 at 12:45

Classification

Accident

Location

Benoit, Mississippi, United States

Nearest airport

Private Grass Airstrip (None)

Coordinates

33.6027, -91.0231

Aircraft

Air Tractor AT-802

Registration

N363BG

Category

Airplane

Year built

2012

Engines

1

Operator

Old River Flying Service LLC

Operating rule

Part 137: Agricultural

Purpose of flight

Aerial Application

Phase of flight

Not recorded

Aircraft damage

Substantial

Weather

VMC

Light

Day

NTSB number

CEN21FA334

1 person died.

The pilot’s exceedance of the airplane’s takeoff performance capabilities and his failure to abort the takeoff in a timely manner. Contributing to the accident was the pilot’s impairment due to his use of ethanol and prohibited medications.

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

Read the full NTSB narrative

The agricultural airplane was operating from a private grass airstrip that was 2,164 ft long and 100 ft wide. The airplane had just been fueled with 225 gallons of fuel and loaded with 635 gallons of chemicals before takeoff. Witnesses stated that the takeoff roll was normal but that, at the departure end of the runway, the airplane struck an embankment, nosed over, and came to rest inverted in a field. The airplane sustained substantial damaged to both wings, the empennage, and fuselage. A postaccident examination of the airplane showed no preaccident mechanical failures or malfunctions that would have precluded normal operation. Based on the airplane’s weight, the field elevation, the field type (turf), and the weather conditions at the time of the accident, the airplane’s planned takeoff ground roll would have been about 2,460 ft, which exceeded the length of the airstrip. Neither witness reported observations consistent with the pilot attempting to abort the takeoff. Thus, the pilot exceeded the airplane’s performance limitations during the takeoff. Toxicology testing detected ethanol at .189 g/dL in the pilot’s blood, .252 g/dL in his vitreous fluid, and .141 g/dL in his urine. Based on available medical evidence, it is likely that the pilot had consumed ethanol. The extent to which measured ethanol levels were affected by postmortem ethanol production is unknown, preventing reliable estimation of the pilot’s blood ethanol level at the time of the crash. Toxicology testing also found gabapentin and doxepin in the pilot’s specimens, both of which can cause impairment, especially when combined with ethanol. The evidence was not sufficient to determine whether doxepin was exerting some effects during the accident flight. However, given the concentration of gabapentin in the pilot’s blood and urine specimens, gabapentin was likely exerting some performanceimpairing effects, such as sedation and dizziness, which would have been more likely to occur in the presence of ethanol. Thus, the pilot was most likely impaired by the effects of the combined substances in his system.

Quoted verbatim from the NTSB record.