Air Tractor AT-301 accident near Littlefield, Texas, October 18, 2000
On October 18, 2000 at about 4:30 pm local time, a Air Tractor AT-301, registered N3165G, was destroyed in an accident near Littlefield, Texas. 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 with a guy wire while maneuvering during an aerial application flight.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made October 5, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- October 18, 2000 · about 4:30 pm local time
- Place
- Littlefield, Texas · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- 1 person was killed.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Air Tractor AT-301
- Registration
- N3165G · no longer on the register · serial 301-0546
- Damage
- Destroyed
- Flight
- Aerial application (crop spraying) flight · agricultural flying rules (Part 137)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
The agricultural airplane was spraying a cotton field approximately 5 feet about the ground, when the right wing struck a guy wire extending out from a transmission line, which ran along the south edge of the field. This was the pilot's first pass on the field, and he was flying from west to east parallel to the transmission line and perpendicular to the guy wire. The guy wire extended into the cotton field and stabilized a pole. The wire struck about 4 feet in from the right wing tip and tore the end of the wing off. The airplane impacted the ground within 600 feet of the wire strike and a fire erupted.
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; instructor: airplane multi-engine; instructor: airplane single-engine
- Flight time: 26,429 hours in all; 1,150 in this make and model
- Medical certificate: Class 2 (valid medical--w/ waivers/lim.)
- Seat: ctr
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 3,165 hours
- Last inspection: inspection type not recorded
- Maximum gross weight: 7,300 lb
- Seats: 1
- Landing gear: fixed
- Engine: P&W R-1340-AN1 (piston); 0 hours total
- Fire on the ground
The flight
- Departed from: Q00
- Flight plan: none
- Runway 0
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Wind: from 180° at 6 knots
- Visibility: 10 statute miles
- Sky: clear
- Temperature: 0°F (-18°C), dew point 0°F (-18°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.