Air Tractor AT-400 accident near Oil Trough, Arkansas, June 8, 2001
On June 8, 2001 at about 7:00 pm local time, a Air Tractor AT-400, registered N400ZR, was substantially damaged in an accident near Oil Trough, Arkansas (Private 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
the pilot's failure to refuel the airplane which resulted in the loss of engine power due to fuel exhaustion. A contributory factor was the lack of suitable terrain for the forced landing.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made October 5, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- June 8, 2001 · about 7:00 pm local time
- Place
- Oil Trough, Arkansas · Private · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- No one was hurt; 1 person was on board or involved.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Air Tractor AT-400
- Registration
- N400ZR · no longer on the register · serial 400-0516
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Aerial application (crop spraying) flight · agricultural flying rules (Part 137)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
While returning to the private grass airstrip, the agricultural airplane's engine lost power, and the pilot executed a forced landing to a field. During the landing roll, the airplane impacted crops, ground looped, and came to rest upright in the field. Examination by an FAA inspector found that the airplane's fuel tank was empty. The pilot stated that fuel starvation occurred.
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: 7,500 hours in all; 1,500 in this make and model; 7,500 as pilot in command
- Last flight review: September 27, 1999
- Medical certificate: Class 2 (valid medical--no waivers/lim.)
- Seat: ctr
- Injury: no injuries
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 6,500 hours
- Last inspection: 100-hour inspection, May 12, 2001; 100 hours since
- Maximum gross weight: 7,000 lb
- Seats: 1
- Landing gear: fixed
- Engine: P&W PT6-11AG (turboprop); 0 hours total
The flight
- Departed from: N/A Oil Trough AR at 6:50 pm
- Flight plan: none
- Runway 36
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Wind: from 090° at 5 knots
- Visibility: 10 statute miles
- Sky: clear
- Temperature: 84°F (29°C), dew point 64°F (18°C)
- Altimeter: 30.02 inHg
- Observation at 6:55 pm from BVX
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.