Air Tractor AT-401 N4543F

Summary

On 28 August 1998 at about 23:45 local time, a Air Tractor AT-401 registered N4543F was involved in an accident near N. Ottawa Twp., Minnesota, United States. One person was on board and nobody was injured. The aircraft was destroyed. The NTSB has published a probable cause for this accident; it is quoted in full below.

Date

28 August 1998 at 23:45

Classification

Accident

Location

N. Ottawa Twp., Minnesota, United States

Coordinates

45.8609, -96.1904

Aircraft

Air Tractor AT-401

Registration

N4543F

Category

Airplane

Engines

1

Operator

Not recorded

Operating rule

Part 137: Agricultural

Purpose of flight

Aerial Application

Phase of flight

Not recorded

Route

Northfield → Unknown

Aircraft damage

Destroyed

Weather

VMC

Light

Day

NTSB number

CHI98LA355

Nobody was injured.

A loss of engine power due to a worn piston ring. A related factor was the owner exceeded the manufacturer's recommended engine overhaul.

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

Read the full NTSB narrative

About 5-minutes after the aerial applicator flight had taken off the pilot said, the airplane's engine experienced a partial power loss. He said the airplane '...did not want to climb and began to settle down.' The pilot ejected his chemical load and was maneuvering for a landing when the right wingtip and landing gear struck the ground. The airplane cartwheeled and rolled over the ground before coming to a stop inverted. The on-scene investigation revealed the airplane s engine had 1 cylinder with no compression. Examination showed the piston rings were badly worn and there was no taper to the cylinder. At the time of the accident the engine was about 70-hours beyond the manufacturer's recommended overhaul time. The airplane had received an annual inspection about 4-months before the accident. The engine logbook showed all compression readings were within the manufacturers recommended range.

Quoted verbatim from the NTSB record.