Air Tractor AT-301 accident near Conrad, Montana, April 5, 1987
On April 5, 1987 at about 9:00 pm local time, a Air Tractor AT-301, registered N23069, was substantially damaged in an accident near Conrad, Montana. 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 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 5, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- April 5, 1987 · about 9:00 pm local time
- Place
- Conrad, Montana · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- No one was hurt; 1 person was on board or involved.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Air Tractor AT-301
- Registration
- N23069 · registry record · serial 301-0350
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Aerial application (crop spraying) flight · agricultural flying rules (Part 137)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
AN AG PLT WAS RETURNING FROM AN AERIAL APPLICATION. SIX MILES FROM THE DESTINATION ARPT THE ENGINE QUIT. THE PLT ATTEMPTED TO LAND ON A ROAD BUT THE ACFT STRUCK THE EDGE OF A PIT, SPUN ACROSS THE ROAD AND CAME TO REST FACING 180 DEGREES FROM THE ORIGINAL HEADING. ENGINE EXAMINATION DISCLOSED SUPERCHARGER IMPELLER DAMAGE TYPICAL OF FOREIGN OBJECT INGESTION. FIVE OF THE NINE CYLINDERS HAD LOW COMPRESSION AND SHOWED METAL PARTICLES ON PISTON AND VALVE SURFACES. THE LEFT MAGNETO HAD BRASS, COPPER, AND ALUMINUM PARTICLES THROUGHOUT THE INTERIOR AND FAILED TO PRODUCE SPARK WHEN ROTATED. THE RIGHT MAGNETO DID PRODUCE SPARK WHEN ROTATED BUT THREE OF THE NINE PLUGS SERVED BY THIS MAGNETO WERE METAL FOULED IN THE ELECTRODES.
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
- Flight time: 2,404 hours in all; 934 in this make and model; 21 in the last 90 days; 1,627 as pilot in command
- Medical certificate: Class 2 (valid medical--no waivers/lim.)
- Seat: frt
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 1,095 hours
- Last inspection: annual inspection, March 1, 1987; 12 hours since
- Maximum gross weight: 1,500 lb
- Seats: 1
- Landing gear: fixed
- Engine: P&W R-1340-AN-1 (piston); 0 hours total
The flight
- Flight plan: none
- Runway 0
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Visibility: 40 statute miles
- Sky: scat at 25,000 ft
- Temperature: 63°F (17°C), dew point 37°F (3°C)
- Altimeter: 29.00 inHg
- Observation at 8:50 pm from CTB, 28 miles away
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 N23069 the same tail number, which may have belonged to a different aircraft at the time
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.