On July 14, 1983, a Cessna T188C (registration N2060J) was involved in an aviation accident near Carthage, SD. Investigators recorded the probable cause as: The pilot's failure to ensure the hopper lid was securely seated prior to loading chemicals, which resulted in herbicide obscuring the windscreen and loss of control during takeoff. This summary draws on records from the U.S. National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) historical archive.
An agricultural aircraft veered right into a ditch during takeoff after herbicide sloshed onto the windscreen, obscuring the pilot's vision due to an improperly seated hopper lid.
What happened
The aircraft was operating in an agricultural capacity, utilizing a county road adjacent to the field being treated as a temporary runway for takeoff. During the initial phase of the takeoff roll, the pilot reported that herbicide from the onboard tank sloshed out and coated the windscreen, significantly obscuring forward vision.
Due to the loss of visual reference, the aircraft veered to the right off the paved surface and entered a roadside ditch. The pilot later determined that the hopper lid had not been seated properly during the chemical onloading process, which allowed the liquid to escape under pressure or vibration during the takeoff run.
Probable cause
The pilot's failure to ensure the hopper lid was securely seated prior to loading chemicals, which resulted in herbicide obscuring the windscreen and loss of control during takeoff.
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