Air Tractor AT-301 accident near Brownsville, Texas, June 14, 1985
On June 14, 1985 at about 3:30 pm local time, a Air Tractor AT-301, registered N23692, was substantially damaged in an accident near Brownsville, Texas. It was an aerial application (crop spraying) flight under agricultural flying rules (Part 137). 1 person was seriously injured. 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
- June 14, 1985 · about 3:30 pm local time
- Place
- Brownsville, Texas
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- 1 person was seriously injured.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Air Tractor AT-301
- Registration
- N23692 · no longer on the register · serial 3010417
- 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 AG ACFT WAS DESTROYED WHEN IT FAILED TO PULL OUT OF AN AERIAL APPLICATION MANEUVER FOLLOWING THE INITIAL SWATH RUN OVER A FIELD. THE PLT STATED THAT AFTER MAKING HIS TURN TO RETURN TO THE FIELD, HE ATTEMPTED TO LEVEL THE ACFT AND RECEIVED NO RESPONSE FROM THE ELEVATOR CONTROLS. THE OPERATOR'S POST-ACDT EXAMINATION OF THE WRECKAGE REVEALED THAT AN 'AN-410' BOLT WAS MISSING BETWEEN THE ELEVATOR TORQUE TUBE AND THE ELEVATOR HORNS. THE BOLT AND LOCK NUT WERE NOT FOUND IN THE WRECKAGE.
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: 4,228 hours in all; 1,395 in this make and model; 66 in the last 90 days; 4,228 as pilot in command
- Medical certificate: Class 2 (valid medical--no waivers/lim.)
- Seat: ctr
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 815 hours
- Last inspection: annual inspection, March 1, 1985; 66 hours since
- Maximum gross weight: 3,200 lb
- Seats: 1
- Landing gear: fixed
- Engine: P&W R-1340 (piston); 0 hours total
The flight
- Departed from: Los Fresnos TX at 3:15 pm
- Flight plan: none
- Runway 0
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Wind: from 040° at 10 knots
- Visibility: 10 statute miles
- Sky: scat at 2,800 ft
- Temperature: 86°F (30°C), dew point 72°F (22°C)
- Altimeter: 29.00 inHg
- Observation at 4:18 pm from BRO, 5 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.