Air Tractor AT802 N779DA

Summary

On 1 June 2020 at about 00:17 local time, a Air Tractor AT802 registered N779DA, operated by Aero Spray Inc, was involved in an accident near Unalakleet, Alaska, United States. One person was on board and nobody was injured. The aircraft was substantially damaged. The NTSB has published a probable cause for this accident; it is quoted in full below.

Date

1 June 2020 at 00:17

Classification

Accident

Location

Unalakleet, Alaska, United States

Coordinates

63.9061, -160.2544

Aircraft

Air Tractor AT802

Registration

N779DA

Category

Airplane

Year built

2018

Engines

1

Operator

Aero Spray Inc

Operating rule

Part 91: General Aviation

Purpose of flight

Fire Fighting

Phase of flight

Not recorded

Route

Galena → Galena

Aircraft damage

Substantial

Weather

VMC

Light

Day

NTSB number

ANC20CA052

Nobody was injured.

The pilot's failure to maintain terrain clearance during the departure, which resulted in a collision with terrain..

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

Read the full NTSB narrative

The pilot of the amphibious scooper air tanker airplane, reported that while preforming aerial firefighting operations, he heard ground firefighters express concern over the radio about their equipment "being too close to the fire line." In response, the pilot landed at a small lake to fill the airplane's water hopper tank with water to drop on the fire. During the departure from the lake, the airplane’s left float struck a "small hill" that was about 20 ft above ground level. The pilot proceeded to fly the airplane to a nearby airport and made an uneventful landing. A postaccident examination of the airplane revealed substantial damage to the fuselage. The pilot reported that there were no preaccident mechanical failures or malfunctions with the airplane that would have precluded normal operation.

Quoted verbatim from the NTSB record.