Grumman G-164B accident near Stuttgart, Arkansas, May 26, 1993
On May 26, 1993 at about 2:30 pm local time, a Grumman G-164B, registered N8405K, was destroyed in an accident near Stuttgart, Arkansas. 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
PILOT'S FAILURE TO MAINTAIN CLEARANCE FROM THE ELECTRICAL WIRES.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made October 5, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- May 26, 1993 · about 2:30 pm local time
- Place
- Stuttgart, Arkansas · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- No one was hurt; 1 person was on board or involved.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Grumman G-164B · all G-164Bs on the register
- Registration
- N8405K · registry record · serial 688B
- Damage
- Destroyed
- Flight
- Aerial application (crop spraying) flight · agricultural flying rules (Part 137)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
DURING AERIAL APPLICATION 0PERATIONS THE PILOT ATTEMPTED TO FLY UNDER SOME ELECTRICAL POWER LINES WHEN HIS RIGHT WING CONTACTED A STATIC LINE. FOLLOWING THE WIRE CONTACT THE RIGHT WING STRUT COLLAPSED, THE RIGHT WING FOLDED UPWARD AND THE AIRPLANE ROLLED LEFT AND CLIMBED TO 200 FEET ABOVE GROUND LEVEL. THE AIRPLANE DESCENDED FROM 200 FEET IN A NEAR VERTICAL DESCENT AND IMPACTED THE GROUND.
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; instrument: airplane
- Flight time: 4,645 hours in all; 2,708 in this make and model; 200 in the last 90 days; 120 in the last 30 days; 4,289 as pilot in command
- Medical certificate: Class 2 (valid medical--no waivers/lim.)
- Seat: ctr
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 4,500 hours
- Last inspection: annual inspection, February 16, 1993; 200 hours since
- Maximum gross weight: 6,075 lb
- Seats: 1
- Landing gear: fixed
- Engine: P&W PT6A-20B (turboprop); 0 hours total
- Operator: Farmers Aerial Seeders INC.
The flight
- Departed from: NONE at 2:15 pm
- Destination: NONE
- Flight plan: none
- Runway 0
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Wind: from 070° at 8 knots
- Visibility: 7 statute miles
- Sky: scat at 25,000 ft
- Temperature: 66°F (19°C), dew point 55°F (13°C)
- Altimeter: 30.00 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 N8405K 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.