NTSB CAROL · Event
Event CEN25LA140
Registry · N41687
FAA Aircraft Registry record.
Make / Model
AIR TRACTOR INC AT-802A
Year of manufacture
2008 · 17 years old at event
Engine
P&W CANADA PT6A-65AG (1300 hp)
Seats / Engines
2 seats · 1 engine
Last airworthiness date
20081219
ADS-B equipped
Yes — Mode-S A4EDFA
Registrant of record
OVER THE TOP AVIATION INC
Source: FAA Aircraft Registry (releasable master file).
Aircraft involved
Probable cause & findings
The pilot’s failure to maintain clearance from an excavator during low-altitude aerial application operations.
Factual narrative
The aerial application airplane arrived at the field to apply product, and the pilot visually observed an unoccupied excavator parked near the field. The pilot decided to perform a spray pass up to the excavator and then climb over it and continue the spray pass. When the pilot approached the excavator, he misjudged its height, and the left tire impacted the boom arm. After the airplane struck the boom arm, it impacted the ground and slid about 300 yards which resulted in substantial damage to the wings, fuselage, and empennage. The airplane came to rest upright, and the pilot was able to egress from the airplane without further incident. The pilot reported there were no preaccident mechanical malfunctions or failures with the airplane that would have precluded normal operation. Source: NTSB Aviation Accident Database Retrieved: 2026-02-12
NTSB Findings
Hierarchical cause / factor breakdown from the FAA bulk avdata database. Each finding tagged C (Cause) or F (Factor).
- — Personnel issues-Action/decision-Info processing/decision-Decision making/judgment-Pilot
- — Aircraft-Aircraft oper/perf/capability-Performance/control parameters-Altitude-Not attained/maintained
- — Personnel issues-Psychological-Perception/orientation/illusion-Perception-Pilot
Verbatim from NTSB's published report. Source file
NTSB_2025_CEN25LA140.txt.
Findings + structured fields enriched from FAA avall.mdb.
Full investigation docket on
data.ntsb.gov ↗.
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