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WPR12CA026

2011-11-02 · Kahlotus, Washington, United States · Serious · 1 aircraft · Status: Completed

Current FAA registration · N1206S

Make / Model
AYRES CORPORATION S2R-600
Year of manufacture
1978 · 33 years old at event
Engine
P&W R1340 SERIES (600 hp)
Seats / Engines
1 seats · 1 engine
Last airworthiness date
19961008
ADS-B equipped
Yes — Mode-S A056ED

Source: FAA Aircraft Registry (releasable master file).

Aircraft involved

Probable cause & findings

The pilot’s failure to maintain clearance from the ground due to his distraction with programming a global positioning system receiver.

Factual narrative

The purpose of the flight was agricultural aerial application. The pilot pulled off a field to proceed to the next field 3 miles away. He diverted his attention to reprogram the cockpit GPS (Global Positioning System), and failed to retrim the airplane with nose up trim. While the pilot was reprograming the GPS the airplane entered a shallow descent and impacted the top of a small hill. The pilot was conducting an aerial application flight; he had just completed an application and was proceeding to another nearby field. He diverted his attention to reprogram the cockpit global positioning system (GPS) receiver and failed to retrim the airplane with nose-up trim. While the pilot was reprogramming the GPS receiver, the airplane entered a shallow descent and impacted the top of a small hill. Source: NTSB Aviation Accident Database Retrieved: 2026-02-12

NTSB Findings

FAA avdata. C = Cause, F = Factor.

  • C Personnel issues-Psychological-Attention/monitoring-Monitoring environment-Pilot - C
  • C Environmental issues-Physical environment-Terrain-Mountainous/hilly terrain-Awareness of condition - C
  • C Personnel issues-Task performance-(general)-(general)-Pilot - C

Verbatim from NTSB's published report. Source file NTSB_2011_WPR12CA026.txt. Findings + structured fields enriched from FAA avall.mdb. Full investigation docket on data.ntsb.gov ↗.

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