Probable cause
The pilot's failure to maintain clearance from an irrigation vent pipe.
NTSB analysis
The pilot stated that he was making a low aerial application pass over a field, dispensing smoke to determine wind direction and velocity. The airplane struck a 20-foot-high irrigation vent pipe, which was located in the field that he was working. He proceeded straight ahead and attempted a forced landing on a dirt road immediately next to the field because the engine was losing power. Upon touching down, the right main wheel encountered soft dirt and the airplane nosed over inverted, bending the engine mount and wrinkling the fuselage and vertical stabilizer.
Text from the NTSB. Open the NTSB docket for WPR11CA128 for the full record.
Event
- Date
- Feb 5, 2011
- Type
- Accident
- Place
- Buttonwillow, California
- Highest injury
- None
- Weather
- Visual (VMC)
- Light
- Day
Schweizer G-164B
- N-number
- N6725K
- Category
- Airplane
- Damage
- Substantial
- Operating rule
- Part 137 (agricultural)
- Purpose of flight
- Aerial application
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.