Air Tractor AT-602 accident near Meridian, Mississippi, April 15, 2006
On April 15, 2006 at about 9:30 pm local time, a Air Tractor AT-602, registered N5003E, was destroyed in an accident near Meridian, Mississippi. 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 pilot's failure to maintain clearance from trees. Contributing factors were the drug impairment and low maneuvering altitude.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made October 5, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- April 15, 2006 · about 9:30 pm local time
- Place
- Meridian, Mississippi · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- 1 person was killed.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Air Tractor AT-602
- Registration
- N5003E · registry record · serial 602-0397
- Damage
- Destroyed
- Flight
- Aerial application (crop spraying) flight · agricultural flying rules (Part 137)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
The 8,600-hour commercial pilot was maneuvering at a low altitude during a local aerial application flight, when the airplane impacted a tree and subsequently the ground. The airplane came to rest in the upright position and was destroyed by a post-impact fire. All major components of the airplane were accounted for at the accident site. Continuity was established to all of the airplane's flight controls. An examination of the airplane's engine and propeller revealed no pre-impact anomalies. A toxicological evaluation of the pilot's specimens revealed hydrocodone and alprazolam. Both drugs have been shown to have a negative effect on psychomotor task. The level of hydrocodone reported in the pilot's blood was more then 50 times the level expected about one and a half hours following a typical single maximum dose of medication. The level of alprazolam reported in the pilot's blood was consistent with more than twice the dose shown to cause 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
Pilot
- Certificate: commercial pilot
- Ratings: single-engine land
- Flight time: 8,600 hours in all; 800 in this make and model; 500 in the last 90 days; 100 in the last 30 days; 8,600 as pilot in command
- Medical certificate: Class 2 (with waivers/limitations)
- Seat: sngl
- Injury: fatal
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 10,326 hours
- Last inspection: annual inspection, October 1, 2005
- Maximum gross weight: 12,500 lb
- Seats: 1
- Landing gear: fixed
- Engine: Pratt & Whitney PT6A (turboprop); 0 hours total
- Fire on the ground
The flight
- Departed from: Meridain MS at 8:40 pm
- Flight plan: none
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Wind: from 200° at 9 knots
- Visibility: 10 statute miles
- Sky: clear
- Temperature: 84°F (29°C), dew point 57°F (14°C)
- Altimeter: 29.84 inHg
- Observation at 9:53 pm from MEI, 30 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.
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.