Accident Description
The accident occurred during an aerial application flight from a 2,000-foot turf runway. The pilot had completed two successful flights from the same runway earlier that day. During the accident flight, the airplane became airborne but failed to climb out of ground effect. The pilot reported that the airplane "sagged," or lost lift, causing the left main landing gear to strike an embankment. The airplane subsequently landed in an adjacent cornfield, sustaining substantial damage to the wings and fuselage.
Pilot Report
According to the pilot, the airplane was not on level terrain when the chemical was added to the load prior to the accident flight. This might have affected the accuracy of the sight gauge used to measure the chemical quantity. The pilot was distracted during the loading and refueling process and did not recheck the chemical level in the hopper. He stated that the airplane's maximum gross weight was exceeded by approximately 500 pounds.
The pilot noted that a dust devil might have affected the airplane during the departure. He reported no mechanical malfunction or failure of the airplane before impact with the terrain.
Conditions
The temperature at the time of the accident was about 95 degrees Fahrenheit, with wind from 270 degrees at 5 knots. The pilot departed from runway 18 with 10 degrees of flaps.