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Accidents · NTSB FTW87LA114 · Preliminary: the investigation is not finished

Ayres S2R-1820 accident near Ville Platte, Louisiana, May 7, 1987

On May 7, 1987 at about 6:00 pm local time, a Ayres S2R-1820, registered N4025P, was substantially damaged in an accident near Ville Platte, 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
May 7, 1987 · about 6:00 pm local time
Place
Ville Platte, Louisiana · map
Type
Accident
Injuries
No one was hurt; 1 person was on board or involved.
Weather
visual conditions (good weather)
Aircraft
Ayres S2R-1820
Registration
N4025P · registry record · serial R1820-0180C
Damage
Substantial damage
Flight
Aerial application (crop spraying) flight · agricultural flying rules (Part 137)

The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record

AFTER LANDING ON A WET GRASS STRIP THE PILOT REALIZED THAT THE AIRCRAFT WAS NOT GOING TO STOP. OBSTRUCTIONS OFF THE END OF THE RUNWAY PREVENTED A GO-AROUND. THE AIRCRAFT COLLIDED WITH TWO TREES CAUSING SUBSTANTIAL DAMAGE.

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: 9,645 hours in all; 1,639 in this make and model; 150 in the last 90 days; 9,488 as pilot in command
  • Medical certificate: Class 2 (valid medical--no waivers/lim.)
  • Seat: ctr

The aircraft

  • Airframe total time: 1,645 hours
  • Last inspection: annual inspection, July 20, 1986
  • Maximum gross weight: 10,000 lb
  • Seats: 2
  • Landing gear: fixed
  • Engine: Wright 1820 (piston); 0 hours total

The flight

  • Flight plan: none
  • Runway 0

Weather at the time

  • Light: daylight
  • Wind: at 3 knots
  • Visibility: 5 statute miles
  • Sky: overcast at 2,000 ft; clear
  • Temperature: 79°F (26°C), dew point 0°F (-18°C)
  • Altimeter: 30.00 inHg

Injuries

FatalSeriousMinorNone
Crew1

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 N4025P the same tail number, which may have belonged to a different aircraft at the time

1983-06-14FTW83LA277 · accident near Ville Platte, LA · substantial damage · no injuries

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.