On July 21, 1987, an Air Tractor AT301 (registration N4407S) operated by Larry Skalitsky was involved in an aviation accident near Santa Rosa, TX. Investigators recorded the probable cause as: The pilot delayed initiating the pull-up maneuver, resulting in impact with the upper static wire of the power line. This summary draws on records from the U.S. National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) historical archive.
During agricultural spraying, a pilot struck an upper static power line after delaying a pull-up maneuver to avoid a road hazard, crashing into an adjacent field.
Accident Details
An agricultural pilot was conducting aerial application (dusting) operations over a sugar cane field. The field bordered a dirt road that ran parallel to a set of electrical transmission lines. The pilot had been terminating his swath runs by flying underneath the electrical wires at the edge of the field. On the accident run, to avoid becoming a hazard to an automobile traveling on the road, he planned to terminate the swath run by pulling up and flying over the wires instead of under them.
Sequence of Events
The pilot delayed in initiating the pull-up maneuver. As a result, the aircraft impacted the upper (static) wire of the power line. After striking the wire, the aircraft continued and impacted the ground beyond the roadway in another sugar cane field.
Findings
The investigation determined that the pilot's delay in initiating the pull-up maneuver led directly to the collision with the power line and subsequent ground impact. The pilot had intended to clear the wires but failed to execute the maneuver in time.
Probable cause
The pilot delayed initiating the pull-up maneuver, resulting in impact with the upper static wire of the power line.