Air Tractor AT802 N759FA accident near Dell, Arkansas

Probable cause

The pilot’s failure to maintain airspeed while maneuvering at low altitude, which resulted in an aerodynamic stall and collision with terrain.

NTSB analysis

The pilot departed on his fourth agricultural flight of the day to apply a fungicide agent to the crop. Two witnesses, who saw the airplane during the flight, indicated that the airplane made a steep turn, then lost altitude.

Postaccident examination of the accident site revealed, the airplane impacted terrain in a steep attitude. The front of the airplane was heavily damaged, the wings were accordioned-crushed along the wingspan, and the engine was embedded in the ground. Examination of the airframe and engine did not reveal any preimpact abnormalities that would have contributed to the accident.

Nonvolatile memory was successfully downloaded from the airplane’s engine monitor. A review of the data noted that the accident flight was the 630th session and that no anomalies in the engine parameters were recorded before the end of the recording.

The accident is consistent with an aerodynamic stall following a loss of airspeed while the pilot maneuvered at low altitude.

Text from the NTSB. Open the NTSB docket for CEN20LA357 for the full record.