Air Tractor AT 602 accident near Floydada, Texas, September 14, 2007
On September 14, 2007 at about 6:40 pm local time, a Air Tractor AT 602, registered N8522P, was substantially damaged in an accident near Floydada, Texas (Floydada Municipal airport). 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
A leak in the outer ply of the BeCu bellows. This hole appeared to be the result of pitting corrosion, but the corroding agent was not determined.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made October 5, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- September 14, 2007 · about 6:40 pm local time
- Place
- Floydada, Texas · Floydada Municipal · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- No one was hurt; 1 person was on board or involved.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Air Tractor AT 602
- Registration
- N8522P · registry record · serial 0704
- 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 headed toward a spray site in his single-engine, turboprop-equipped agricultural airplane when the engine began to lose power. He described the power loss as a "min-flow" condition, and he was forced to make an emergency landing to a field. As a result, the fuel control unit was removed from the engine and the bellows and rod guide were examined. Examination of the rod guide revealed there was a small leak between the CDP and overboard drain; however, the leak was not enough to cause a significant decrease from the fuel control. Examination of the bellows revealed there was a small hole in the outer ply that was significant enough to reduce fuel flow. The hole was due to pitting corrosion, but since the corrosive agent could not be determined, it was not possible to determine at what point the corrosion began. On July 3, 2006, Pratt and Whitney Canada issued Service Bulletin 13408, titled TURBOPROP ENGINE FUEL CONTROL UNIT - REPLACEMENT OF, which applied to the PT6A-65AG and PT6A-65B engines. The purpose of the Service Bulletin was to reduce the chance of a power rollback due to reduced fuel flow as a result of a leak in the Fuel Control Unit (FCU) bellows from material irregularities. The Service Bulletin told the operator to replace the hydromechanical FCU with a new one which incorporated a more robust P3 bellows design and an air flow deflector to prevent P3 air impingement on the bellows. Pratt and Whitney recommended that the FCU be replaced the next time the engine was disassembled and access was available to the necessary subassembly. A review of the aircraft logbooks revealed that this Service Bulletin (which was not mandatory) was applicable to this engine, but had not been complied with at the time of the accident.
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; instrument: airplane
- Flight time: 15,916 hours in all; 6,136 in this make and model; 500 in the last 90 days; 260 in the last 30 days; 15,678 as pilot in command
- Last flight review: May 1, 2007
- Medical certificate: Class 2 (without waivers/limitations)
- Seat: ctr
- Injury: no injuries
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 2,069 hours
- Last inspection: 100-hour inspection, September 1, 2006; 2 hours since
- Maximum gross weight: 12,000 lb
- Seats: 1
- Landing gear: fixed
- Engine: Pratt & Whitney Canada PT6A-65 (turboprop); 0 hours total
The flight
- Departed from: 41F Floydada TX at 6:40 pm
- Flight plan: none
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Wind: from 110° at 9 knots
- Visibility: 10 statute miles
- Sky: scat at 6,000 ft
- Temperature: 84°F (29°C), dew point 59°F (15°C)
- Altimeter: 30.19 inHg
- Observation at 6:53 pm from LBB, 32 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.