Air Tractor AT301 accident near Bonita, Louisiana, July 25, 1985
On July 25, 1985 at about 1:30 pm local time, a Air Tractor AT301, registered N23257, was substantially damaged in an accident near Bonita, Louisiana. 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 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
- July 25, 1985 · about 1:30 pm local time
- Place
- Bonita, Louisiana · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- No one was hurt; 1 person was on board or involved.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Air Tractor AT301
- Registration
- N23257 · registry record · serial 301-0371
- 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 PLT STATED HE WAS THE SECOND OF TWO ACFT IN A FORMATION TAKEOFF AND HE ENCOUNTERED SEVERE WAKE TURBULENCE FROM THE OTHER ACFT (SAME TYPE). HE STATED THAT HE DUMPED HIS LOAD OF CHEMICALS BUT COULD NOT GET ABOVE THE PWR CURVE AND THE ACFT SETTLED INTO A BEAN FLD WHILE IN A THREE POINT ATTITUDE AND FLIPPED INVERTED.
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; 1,492 in this make and model; 200 in the last 90 days; 4,228 as pilot in command
- Medical certificate: Class 2 (valid medical--w/ waivers/lim.)
- Seat: frt
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 2,075 hours
- Last inspection: annual inspection, February 1, 1985
- Maximum gross weight: 5,000 lb
- Seats: 1
- Landing gear: fixed
- Engine: P&W R1340-AN1 (piston); 0 hours total
The flight
- Departed from: Bonita LA
- Flight plan: none
- Runway 0
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Visibility: 5 statute miles
- Sky: not recorded; not recorded
- Temperature: 84°F (29°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.
Other NTSB records under N23257 the same tail number, which may have belonged to a different aircraft at the time
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.