Air Tractor AT-502B N61267 accident near Tunica, Mississippi

Probable cause

The pilot's failure to maintain clearance from the power lines during low-altitude maneuvers.

NTSB analysis

The pilot of the agricultural airplane flew along a set of power lines, which ran over a wooded area that restricted his ability to see both sides of a field that he was going to spray. After flying along the power lines, he determined that he had enough clearance to "fit under the wire." He thought that it looked "good," and began his spray run on the east side of a field passing under the power lines without incident. He then began a spray run on the west side of the field, but as he approached the power lines he realized that the "wire was too low to go under." Rather than risk hooking his main landing gear on the wires and flipping the airplane onto its back, he chose to "fly into the wire." The airplane received substantial damage to the propeller, engine, empennage, wings and landing gear.

Text from the NTSB. Open the NTSB docket for NYC08CA279 for the full record.