Schweizer G-164A accident near Red Lake Falls, Minnesota, June 8, 1985
On June 8, 1985 at about 1:10 am local time, a Schweizer G-164A, registered N6761Q, was destroyed in an accident near Red Lake Falls, Minnesota. 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).
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 October 4, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- June 8, 1985 · about 1:10 am local time
- Place
- Red Lake Falls, Minnesota · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- 1 person was killed.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Schweizer G-164A
- Registration
- N6761Q · registry record · serial 1718
- Damage
- Destroyed
- Flight
- Aerial application (crop spraying) flight · agricultural flying rules (Part 137)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
THE PLT HAD BEEN SPRAY A FIELD IN NORTH & SOUTH DIRECTIONS, THEN ELECTED TO MAKE A SWATH RUN FROM EAST TO WEST TOWARD THE SUN. THIS PASS WAS MADE LATE IN THE DAY. WHILE ON THE SWATH RUN, THE ACFT COLLIDED WITH AN UNMARKED WIRE, THEN VEERED & CRASHED IN A WOODED AREA WHERE THE ACFT BURNED. REPORTEDLY, THE PLT HAD BEEN WORKING FROM SUNRISE TO SUNSET ALMOST EVERY DAY, AND WHEN HE WAS NOT FLYING, HE WAS TENDING TO THE ACFT & OTHER BUSINESS MATTERS.
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: multi-engine land; single-engine land; rotorcraft: helicopter
- Flight time: 4,300 hours in all
- Medical certificate: Class 2 (valid medical--no waivers/lim.)
- Seat: ctr
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 2,000 hours
- Last inspection: annual inspection, May 7, 1985
- Maximum gross weight: 4,500 lb
- Seats: 1
- Landing gear: fixed
- Engine: P&W R-1340-AN-1 (piston); 0 hours total
- Fire on the ground
The flight
- Departed from: D81
- Flight plan: none
- Runway 0
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Visibility: 10 statute miles
- Sky: clear
- Temperature: 75°F (24°C), dew point 0°F (-18°C)
- Observation at 8:10 pm
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.
Other NTSB records under N6761Q the same tail number, which may have belonged to a different aircraft at the time
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 CHI85FA226.