Flight History
On July 25, 2021, about 0745 central daylight time, an Air Tractor 802 airplane, N363BG, was substantially damaged when it was involved in an accident near Benoit, Mississippi. The commercial pilot sustained fatal injuries. The airplane was operated under Title 14 Code of Federal Regulations Part 137 as an aerial application flight. The intent of the flight was to apply product to a bean field located about 3.5 miles southwest of Benoit. According to the operator, the airplane had 225 gallons of Jet A fuel and 635 gallons of product before takeoff. The airplane was operating from a private grass strip that was 2,164 ft long and 100 ft wide, oriented on a magnetic heading of about 230°. Witnesses stated that they observed a normal takeoff roll but that, at the departure end of the runway, the airplane struck an embankment, nosed over, and came to rest inverted in the field.
Personnel Information
The pilot’s last aviation medical examination was on December 18, 2020. At that time, he reported no medication use and no active medical conditions. He was issued a second-class medical certificate limited by a requirement to wear lenses for distant vision and have glasses for near vision.
Aircraft Information
The airplane was an Air Tractor 802. According to the AT-802/802A takeoff ground roll distance chart, the airplane’s total ground roll distance with a weight of 13,630 pounds, a field elevation of 128 ft above ground level, and a temperature of 27°C would have been 2,050 ft on a paved runway. According to the airframe manufacturer, for a takeoff on turf, a runway factor of 1.2 (based on FAA Advisory Circular 23-8C, paragraph 23.45(c)) is added to the calculation. Thus, the accident airplane’s takeoff ground roll distance would have been 2,460 ft.
Airport Information
The same takeoff ground roll distance calculations as above applied. The private grass strip was 2,164 ft long and 100 ft wide.
Wreckage and Impact Information
The airplane came to rest inverted in a soybean field southwest of the airstrip, on its nose, cockpit, vertical stabilizer, and rudder. The forward fuselage, cowling, and firewall were crushed aft and bent upward. The forward cockpit was crushed inward and aft. The windscreen and cockpit windows were broken and fragmented. The tops of the vertical stabilizer and rudder were bent and broken aft. The left wing was crushed aft from the tip inboard about 5 ft. The engine and propeller separated from the airplane and came to rest along a 150 ft path from the initial impact point to the main wreckage. The engine was broken into two sections: the reduction gearbox/exhaust section and the engine power module. The upstream side of the first-stage power turbine vane baffle exhibited circumferential rubbing and deformation. The downstream side of the second-stage power turbine vane ring showed circumferential rubbing on the outer shroud. The second-stage power turbine disk showed that one-fourth of the blades separated just above the blade platform; the remaining blades were fractured in the airfoil at roughly the same height. The propeller was fractured at the flange. All five propeller blades showed bending and twisting toward high pitch; two showed S-bending; four of the five showed chordwise rotational abrasions on the back of the blades. No preaccident mechanical failures or malfunctions were found that would have precluded normal operation.
Medical and Pathological Information
The Bolivar County, Mississippi, Medical Examiner performed an autopsy of the pilot. His cause of death was multiple traumatic head and neck injuries. No significant natural disease was identified. Toxicology testing by the FAA Forensic Sciences Laboratory detected .189 g/dL of ethanol in blood specimens, .252 g/dL of ethanol in vitreous fluid specimens, and .141 g/dL of ethanol in urine specimens. Ethanol is a type of alcohol that, if consumed in beer, wine, and liquor, can impair judgment, psychomotor performance, cognition, and vigilance. FAA regulation imposes strict limits on flying after consuming ethanol, including prohibiting piloting with a blood ethanol level of 0.04 g/dL or greater. The following prescription medications were also found in the pilot’s heart and urine specimens: gabapentin, doxepin (and its metabolite nordoxepin), rosuvastatin, triamterene, amlodipine, fexofenadine (and its metabolite azacyclonol), and carvedilol. Nonprescription medications acetaminophen and ibuprofen were also detected. Gabapentin is used to treat nerve pain and certain seizures; it can cause sedation and dizziness and can impair coordination and performance. Doxepin is an antidepressant that can have sedating effects and cause psychomotor impairment. The FAA considers both gabapentin and doxepin to be 'Do Not Issue/Do Not Fly' medications; regular use of either is disqualifying for pilot medical certification.