Air Tractor AT-401 EC-EIZ Emergency Landing in Deltebre

Incident Overview and Flight Details On July 21, 2011, at 08:58 local time, an Air Tractor AT-401 with registration EC-EIZ made an emergency landing in Deltebre, Tarragona. The aircraft was engaged in commercial aerial spraying operations in the Ebro Delta region, operating from the temporary airstrip at Playa Serrallo. The incident occurred during the seventh flight of the day, which had taken off at 08:45. During the flight, the pilot noted that the throttle control was not transmitting movement to the engine, resulting in a loss of power. The aircraft landed on a dirt road approximately 4 meters wide. During the final phase of the landing roll, the aircraft deviated from the road and fell into an adjacent ditch. The pilot exited the aircraft unassisted and sustained no injuries. The aircraft sustained minor damage, with half of the engine submerged in the ditch. ## Aircraft and Maintenance History The aircraft, owned by Tratamientos Aéreos Agrícolas Perán and leased to Avialsa T-35, S.L., had accumulated 841 flight hours at the time of the incident. It was powered by a Pratt & Whitney R-1340-AN1 engine, which had 5,413 total hours since new. The aircraft's maintenance was managed by Aeronáutica Delgado, an approved maintenance organization. The last maintenance actions included a 25-hour inspection on June 29, 2011, and an annual inspection on May 14, 2011. The throttle control system transmits movement from the cockpit to the engine via a cable and a bellcrank, which is secured to the carburetor shaft using a castellated nut and a safety pin. ## Pilot Experience and Operational Context The pilot-in-command was a 58-year-old commercial pilot with 18,159 total flight hours and 1,653 hours on the type. In the three months prior to the incident, the pilot had logged 42 hours of flight time. The pilot reported that the weather conditions were good, with winds below 5 knots and visibility exceeding 10 kilometers. The pilot stated that the aircraft had sufficient fuel remaining, having flown for 1 hour and 54 minutes against a total endurance of 3 hours and 20 minutes. After the throttle issue was identified, the pilot discharged the remaining product from the hopper and attempted to reach the nearest airstrip, but decided to land on a nearby dirt road after observing another aircraft occupying the strip.