Air Tractor AT400 accident near Widener, Arkansas, February 27, 1994
On February 27, 1994 at about 9:10 pm local time, a Air Tractor AT400, registered N3652D, was destroyed in an accident near Widener, Arkansas. It was an aerial application (crop spraying) flight under agricultural flying rules (Part 137). 1 person was killed. The weather was visual conditions (good weather).
The NTSB's probable cause their words, unchanged
THE PILOT'S LOSS OF CONTROL FOR UNDETERMINED REASONS.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made October 5, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- February 27, 1994 · about 9:10 pm local time
- Place
- Widener, Arkansas · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- 1 person was killed.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Air Tractor AT400
- Registration
- N3652D · no longer on the register · serial 400-0845
- Damage
- Destroyed
- Flight
- Aerial application (crop spraying) flight · agricultural flying rules (Part 137)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
THE AERIAL APPLICATION PILOT LOST CONTROL FOR UNDETERMINED REASONS WHILE MANEUVERING. EACH FLIGHT WAS TAKING APPROXIMATELY FIFTEEN MINUTES. WHEN THE AIRPLANE DID NOT RETURN AT ITS EXPECTED TIME OF RETURN, A CREW WAS DISPATCHED TO THE JOB SITE WHERE THE AIRCRAFT WAS FOUND INVERTED AND BURNING. THERE WERE NO WITNESSES TO THE ACCIDENT; HOWEVER, A PERSON SAW THE AIRPLANE MANEUVERING PRIOR TO THE ACCIDENT, AND SAW SMOKE AFTER THE AIRPLANE HAD IMPACTED THE TERRAIN. EXAMINATION OF THE AIRPLANE AND MAINTENANCE RECORDS DID NOT DISCLOSE ANY MAINTENANCE ANOMALIES. FLIGHT CONTROL CONTINUITY WAS ESTABLISHED. THE AIRPLANE CAME TO REST IN THE INITIAL IMPACT CRATER.
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: 11,000 hours in all; 5,600 in this make and model; 10 in the last 90 days; 8 in the last 30 days; 11,000 as pilot in command
- Medical certificate: Class 2 (valid medical--no waivers/lim.)
- Seat: ctr
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 6,383 hours
- Last inspection: annual inspection, February 1, 1994; 30 hours since
- Maximum gross weight: 6,600 lb
- Seats: 1
- Landing gear: fixed
- Engine: P&W PT6A-15AT (turboprop); 0 hours total
- Fire on the ground
The flight
- Departed from: NONE AR at 9:00 pm
- Flight plan: none
- Runway 0
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Wind: from 360° at 8 knots
- Visibility: 20 statute miles
- Sky: broken clouds at 25,000 ft; not recorded
- Temperature: 45°F (7°C), dew point 18°F (-8°C)
- Altimeter: 30.00 inHg
- Observation at 8:50 pm from MEM, 35 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.