Probable cause
The pilot's failure to see and avoid the radio tower.
NTSB analysis
The pilot was spraying a marshy area for mosquitoes. After making a spray pass, he made a right 180-degree turn to an easterly heading and the right wing struck a radio tower. The pilot didn't know the extent of the damage and there appeared to be a "controllability issue." He elected to land in a pasture. During the landing, the airplane struck and killed a cow and a bull, then collided with a pile of wood, resulting in substantial damage. The unlit 100-foot radio tower was within the walls of a correctional facility, was used for ground communications, and has been there for several years. It was not marked on sectional charts.
Text from the NTSB. Open the NTSB docket for CEN10TA006 for the full record.
Event
- Date
- Oct 3, 2009
- Type
- Accident
- Place
- Jones Creek, Texas
- Highest injury
- None
- Weather
- Visual (VMC)
- Light
- Day
Beech E18S
- N-number
- N797SB
- Category
- Airplane
- Damage
- Substantial
- Operating rule
- Public aircraft
- Purpose of flight
- PUBL
From the NTSB aviation accident database: N-registered aircraft, events since 2008, data through Oct 28, 2026. The file is published monthly, so the latest weeks are incomplete and recent records can change. The official source is the NTSB aviation investigation search. CheckAero is independent and not affiliated with the NTSB.