Thrush Aircraft LLC S2R-T660 accident near Ardoch, North Dakota, September 12, 2023
On September 12, 2023 at about 5:00 pm local time, a 2023 Thrush Aircraft LLC S2R-T660, registered N710TY, was substantially damaged in an accident during maneuvering (low-alt flying) near Ardoch, North Dakota. It was an aerial application (crop spraying) flight under agricultural flying rules (Part 137). 1 person was killed. The weather was visual conditions (good weather).
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The NTSB's probable cause their words, unchanged
The pilot’s failure to maintain clearance from a guy wire during an aerial application flight.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made October 4, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- September 12, 2023 · about 5:00 pm local time
- Place
- Ardoch, North Dakota · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- 1 person was killed.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Thrush Aircraft LLC S2R-T660, built 2023 · all S2R-T660s on the register
- Registration
- N710TY · no longer on the register · serial T660-180
- 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 pilot was conducting an aerial application flight when the airplane’s left wing impacted a guy wire attached to a power line structure. The impact with the guy wire occurred while the airplane was flying along the edge of the field being sprayed. The outboard 7 ft of the left wing and the left aileron separated during the impact with the guy wire. The airplane subsequently crashed in a cornfield about 0.3 mile from the guy wire impact. Examination of the airplane wreckage revealed no evidence of a preimpact malfunction that would have prevented its normal operation. A review of recorded engine monitor data revealed no evidence of an engine malfunction or failure during the flight. Day visual meteorological conditions existed, and the position of the sun at high noon would not have negatively affected the pilot’s view ahead of the airplane. The pilot’s autopsy and postmortem toxicology tests did not reveal any evidence of medical incapacitation or impairment.
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
What happened, in order
- Low altitude operation/event during maneuvering (low-alt flying) defining event
The NTSB's findings
- Personnel issues › Psychological › Attention/monitoring › Monitoring environment › Pilot
- Environmental issues › Physical environment › Object/animal/substance › Wire › Effect on equipment
- Personnel issues › Action/decision › Info processing/decision › Identification/recognition › Pilot
- Environmental issues › Physical environment › Object/animal/substance › Wire › Awareness of condition
Pilot
- Certificate: commercial pilot
- Ratings: single-engine land
- Flight time: 4,000 hours in all
- Last flight review: March 17, 2023
- Medical certificate: Class 1 (without waivers/limitations)
- Seat: sngl
- Injury: fatal
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 296.8 hours
- Last inspection: 100-hour inspection, August 3, 2023
- Maximum gross weight: 12,500 lb
- Seats: 1
- Landing gear: fixed
- Engine: Pratt & Whitney Canada PT6A-65AG (turboprop); 0 hours total
- Operator: Flyiton Ag LLC
The flight
- Departed from: PVT Oslo MN at 4:52 pm
- Destination: PVT Oslo MN
- Flight plan: none
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Wind: from 060° at 9 knots
- Visibility: 10 statute miles
- Sky: scat at 3,900 ft
- Temperature: 61°F (16°C), dew point 41°F (5°C)
- Altimeter: 30.24 inHg
- Observation at 11:53 am from KGFK, 14 miles away
Weather report (METAR): METAR KGFK 121653Z 06009KT 10SM SCT039 16/05 A3024 RMK AO2 SLP246 T01560050=
Injuries
| Fatal | Serious | Minor | None | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Flig | 1 |
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.
About this page
Everything above comes from the NTSB's public accident database: the narrative, probable cause and findings are the NTSB's own words, and the coded tables behind its report (pilot, aircraft, flight, weather, injuries, sequence of events) are written out in plain English. Pilots' ages, home towns and medical details are left out on purpose. The documents and photographs are the NTSB's docket, the folder of records gathered during the investigation, shown as the NTSB released them (the NTSB redacts some personal details first) and listed under the NTSB's own titles. This site's own text never names pilots, passengers or anyone else involved. A preliminary report describes what is known soon after the event and can change; the final report, with the probable cause, usually follows one to two years later and this page is refreshed when it does. Case number CEN23FA409.