Air Tractor 301A N7319C

Summary

On 18 June 1996 at about 17:15 local time, a Air Tractor 301A registered N7319C was involved in an accident near Hunter, Arkansas, United States. One person was on board and one was seriously injured. The aircraft was destroyed. The NTSB has published a probable cause for this accident; it is quoted in full below.

Date

18 June 1996 at 17:15

Classification

Accident

Location

Hunter, Arkansas, United States

Coordinates

35.0509, -91.1192

Aircraft

Air Tractor 301A

Registration

N7319C

Category

Airplane

Engines

1

Operator

Not recorded

Operating rule

Part 137: Agricultural

Purpose of flight

Aerial Application

Phase of flight

Not recorded

Aircraft damage

Destroyed

Weather

VMC

Light

Day

NTSB number

FTW96LA258

1 person was seriously injured.

The loss of engine power for undetermined reasons.

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

Read the full NTSB narrative

Several witnesses in the area at the time of the accident reported that they were observing the airplane as it was spraying a field. They stated that they could not hear the engine running as the airplane began descending toward the ground. According to one of the witnesses, the engine was 'trying to get its sound back' prior to the airplane impacting the ground in a right wing low attitude. The pilot stated that he did not recall any part of the accident event. According to the pilot's ground crew, the airplane was refueled (left wing tank only) prior to the flight. The right wing tank was not checked or refueled. According to the operator, each wing fuel tank has a capacity of 60 gallons of usable fuel. The flight commenced at 1100, and was flying approximately 1 hour 15 minutes prior to the accident. Fuel tank integrity was compromised by impact damage. The airplane was destroyed by impact forces, and an engine run could not be performed.

Quoted verbatim from the NTSB record.