Air Tractor AT-301 accident near Campti, Louisiana, July 11, 1986
On July 11, 1986 at about 11:30 pm local time, a Air Tractor AT-301, registered N3106L, was destroyed in an accident near Campti, Louisiana (Campti airport). It was an aerial application (crop spraying) flight under agricultural flying rules (Part 137). 1 person had minor injuries. 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 11, 1986 · about 11:30 pm local time
- Place
- Campti, Louisiana · Campti · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- 1 person had minor injuries.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Air Tractor AT-301
- Registration
- N3106L · no longer on the register · serial 301-0476
- Damage
- Destroyed
- Flight
- Aerial application (crop spraying) flight · agricultural flying rules (Part 137)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
THE ACFT CRASH LANDED FROM ABOUT 60 FT AGL AFTER THE ENG QUIT DURING THE END OF A COTTON SPRAYING OPERATION. THE PLT SAID HE JUST DIVED & 'PANCAKED' WHICH SHEARED THE LANDING GEAR. THE REASON FOR THE POWER FILURE IS UNKNOWN. THE PLT SAID HE HAS HAD 20 POWER FAILURES, BLOWN JUGS, CAMSHAFT FAILURES, ETC BECAUSE THESE P&W ENGINES ARE 'TIRED IRON'.
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: 20,000 hours in all; 480 in this make and model
- Medical certificate: Class 2 (valid medical--no waivers/lim.)
- Seat: frt
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 1,010 hours
- Last inspection: annual inspection, March 18, 1986; 168 hours since
- Maximum gross weight: 5,000 lb
- Seats: 1
- Landing gear: fixed
- Engine: P&W R-1340 (piston); 0 hours total
The flight
- Flight plan: none
- Runway 0
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Wind: from 170° at 10 knots
- Visibility: 7 statute miles
- Sky: broken clouds
- Temperature: 81°F (27°C), dew point 75°F (24°C)
- Altimeter: 29.00 inHg
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 N3106L 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.