Air Tractor AT-401 accident near Superior, Nebraska, August 26, 2000
On August 26, 2000 at about 1:00 am local time, a Air Tractor AT-401, registered N91842, was destroyed in an accident near Superior, Nebraska. It was an aerial application (crop spraying) flight under agricultural flying rules (Part 137). No one was hurt; 1 person was on board or involved. The weather was visual conditions (good weather).
The NTSB's probable cause their words, unchanged
the cracked number 7 cylinder exhaust valve. A factor relating to this accident was the tree.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made October 5, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- August 26, 2000 · about 1:00 am local time
- Place
- Superior, Nebraska · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- No one was hurt; 1 person was on board or involved.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Air Tractor AT-401
- Registration
- N91842 · no longer on the register · serial 907
- Damage
- Destroyed
- Flight
- Aerial application (crop spraying) flight · agricultural flying rules (Part 137)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
The pilot said he was spraying a milo field, 3 miles southeast of Superior, Nebraska. While in a turn to south, 'the engine started to sputter and miss. Smoke started coming out of the left hand side of the engine ... a substantial power loss followed.' The pilot turned the airplane to the north and attempted to put down in an alfalfa field. During the landing attempt, the airplane struck some hay bales and a tree. An examination of the airplane's engine revealed a cracked exhaust valve on the number 7 cylinder. No other anomalies were found.
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
- Flight time: 3,848 hours in all; 3,436 in this make and model; 120 in the last 90 days; 25 in the last 30 days; 3,799 as pilot in command
- Medical certificate: Class 2 (valid medical--w/ waivers/lim.)
- Seat: ctr
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 2,500 hours
- Last inspection: annual inspection, January 31, 2000; 300 hours since
- Maximum gross weight: 6,000 lb
- Seats: 1
- Landing gear: fixed
- Engine: P&W R-1340 (piston); 0 hours total
The flight
- Departed from: 12K
- Flight plan: none
- Runway 0
Weather at the time
- Light: dusk
- Wind: from 100° at 8 knots
- Visibility: 10 statute miles
- Sky: clear
- Temperature: 82°F (28°C), dew point 72°F (22°C)
Injuries
| Fatal | Serious | Minor | None | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Crew | 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.
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 never names anyone involved. A preliminary report can change; the final report usually follows one to two years later, and the page is refreshed when it does.