No fatalities

9 Jul 2015: WEATHERLY AVIATION CO INC 620B — ZELEDON ROGER J DBA — Hatch, NM

Hatch, NM, United States

On 9 Jul 2015, a WEATHERLY AVIATION CO INC 620B UNDESIGNAT operated by ZELEDON ROGER J DBA was involved in an aviation accident near Hatch, NM. No fatalities were reported. Investigators recorded the probable cause as: The pilot failed to maintain obstacle clearance, and the airplane struck a transmission line wire during aerial application operations. This summary draws on records from NTSB; 11 related events involving the same aircraft type or operator are linked below.

SourcesNTSBPrimary reportUpdated 1778583330Data APIEditorial standards

A pilot reported that during an aerial application flight, the aircraft struck an unseen transmission line during an end clean up pass, then impacted the ground, resulting in substantial damage to the right wing and vertical stabilizer.

Accident Details

The accident occurred during an aerial application operation. According to the pilot, after completing the fungicide application, he initiated an end clean up pass. While executing this maneuver, the aircraft struck a transmission line wire that the pilot reported he did not see. Following the collision with the wire, the airplane impacted the ground.

Aircraft Damage

The ground impact resulted in substantial damage to the right wing and the vertical stabilizer of the aircraft. The pilot reported that there were no pre-impact mechanical failures or malfunctions with the airframe or engine that would have precluded normal operation.

Pilot Report

The pilot stated that he was unaware of the transmission line before the strike. He noted that the aircraft had been functioning normally prior to the accident, and no issues were identified with the airframe or engine that could have contributed to the event.

Contributing factors

PilotAltitude — Not attained/maintainedAwareness of condition