Accident Details
Probable Cause and Findings
The pilot not performing an aborted takeoff. A factor was the soybean crop.
Aircraft Information
Registered Owner (Current)
Analysis
On July 26, 2002, at 1100 central daylight time, an Air Tractor 301, N3167P, piloted by a commercial pilot, sustained substantial damage when it impacted into a soybean field and nosed over during takeoff from a private airstrip near Ulen, Minnesota. The grass runway at the airstrip was reported to be 1/2 mile long and 100 feet wide. The takeoff was performed to the west. The 14 CFR Part 137 aerial application flight was operating in visual meteorological conditions without a flight plan. The pilot received minor injuries. The local flight was originating at the time of the accident.
In a written statement, the pilot stated, "Departed as normal, aircraft at midpoint didn't seem to accelerate normally. By the time I got done rechecking flaps, prop, mixture, [and] power, my booms caught the soybeans [and] pulled me down until I went inverted."
A postaccident examination of the airplane did not reveal any anomalies.
Data Source
Data provided by the National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB). For more information on this event, visit the NTSB Records Search website. NTSB# CHI02LA221