N88932

On September 9, 1998, at 0800 hours Hawaiian standard time, an Emroth-Emair MA-1B, N88932, ground looped while landing in a sugar cane field approximately 5 miles northwest of Lihue, Hawaii. The aircraft sustained substantial damage, and the commercial pilot, the sole occupant, was not injured. The aerial application flight, conducted under 14 CFR Part 137, originated at 0730 at the Lihue airport. Visual meteorological conditions prevailed and no flight plan was filed.

The pilot reported that he was landing on a paved roadway that ran through a sugar cane field to reload the aircraft with fertilizer for the 11th load of the day. He reported that the road was oriented east to west, and that he was landing toward the west. As the tail wheel touched down, the airplane veered off to the left into the field. The left landing gear hit a large rock on the shoulder of the airstrip and broke off. Both lower wings were damaged and the tail wheel trunion was collapsed.

The pilot stated that the winds were calm at the time of the accident, and that on previous flights that day, he had landed to the west and taken off to the east. He did not report experiencing any malfunctions with the aircraft prior to the accident.