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Accidents · NTSB ATL87DLT02 · Preliminary: the investigation is not finished

Gulfstream-Schweizer G164B-600 accident near Union City, Tennessee, July 8, 1987

On July 8, 1987 at about 3:00 pm local time, a Gulfstream-Schweizer G164B-600, registered N8046K, was substantially damaged in an accident near Union City, Tennessee. It was an aerial application (crop spraying) flight under agricultural flying rules (Part 137). 1 person had minor injuries. The weather was visual conditions (good weather).

The NTSB's probable cause their words, unchanged

The NTSB has not yet published a probable cause for this accident. Investigations usually take one to two years; this page updates when the final report is released.

Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made November 2, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.

What the record shows

Date
July 8, 1987 · about 3:00 pm local time · cases in 1987
Place
Union City, Tennessee · map
Type
Accident
Injuries
1 person had minor injuries.
Weather
visual conditions (good weather)
Aircraft
Gulfstream-Schweizer G164B-600
Registration
N8046K · registry record · serial 546B
Damage
Substantial damage
Flight
Aerial application (crop spraying) flight · agricultural flying rules (Part 137)

The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record

THE AG-ACFT LOST POWER WHILE TURNING, SHORTLY AFTER DEPARTURE FROM A FIELD. DURING THE SUBSEQUENT FORCED LDG, THE ACFT STRUCK A FENCE AND NOSED OVER. THE ENGINE WAS TORN FROM THE ACFT DURING THE IMPACT SEQUENCE. POST-CRASH EXAMINATION OF THE ACFT ENGINE BY AN FAA INSPECTOR REVEALED A QUANTITY OF WATER IN THE CARBURETOR.

The complete narrative as the NTSB published it. The NTSB's docket holds the report as a PDF and any photographs, statements and other documents from the investigation.

The factual record from the NTSB's investigation tables, in plain English

Pilot

  • Certificate: commercial pilot
  • Ratings: single-engine land; instructor: airplane single-engine; instrument: airplane
  • Flight time: 10,000 hours in all; 2,000 in this make and model; 130 in the last 90 days
  • Medical certificate: Class 2 (valid medical--w/ waivers/lim.)
  • Seat: frt

The aircraft

  • Last inspection: annual inspection, March 5, 1987
  • Maximum gross weight: 2,000 lb
  • Seats: 1
  • Landing gear: fixed
  • Engine: P&W R1340 SERIES (piston); 0 hours total

The flight

  • Flight plan: none
  • Runway 0

Weather at the time

  • Light: daylight
  • Wind: from 110° at 4 knots
  • Visibility: 7 statute miles
  • Sky: overcast at 10,000 ft; not recorded
  • Temperature: 79°F (26°C), dew point 72°F (22°C)
  • Altimeter: 30.00 inHg
  • Observation at 2:55 pm from DYR, 30 miles away

Injuries

FatalSeriousMinorNone
Crew1

Documents from the investigation the NTSB's docket: the evidence folder behind the report

The docket, the folder of records gathered during an investigation (maintenance records, photographs, witness statements, examinations), has not been read from the NTSB for this case yet; the list appears here once it has. Open the docket at the NTSB.

Connections how this case links to the rest of the register

Aircraft
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Analytics

The whole map of how records connect · these connections as data: /graph/accident/ATL87DLT02.json.

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Everything on this page comes from the NTSB's public records. The narrative, probable cause and findings are the NTSB's own words; the coded tables behind the report are written out in plain English, with pilots' ages, home towns and medical details left out. The documents and photographs are the NTSB's docket, shown as the NTSB released them. This site's own text does not name anyone involved, its policy at this time. A preliminary report can change; the final report usually follows one to two years later, and the page is refreshed when it does.