Air Tractor AT-401 accident near Taft, Texas, August 22, 1995
On August 22, 1995 at about 11:30 pm local time, a Air Tractor AT-401, registered N9190Q, was destroyed in an accident near Taft, Texas. 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 PILOT'S DIVERTED ATTENTION, WHICH RESULTED IN HIS FAILURE TO ASSURE THAT CLEARANCE WAS MAINTAINED FROM THE TRANSMISSION LINE.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made October 5, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- August 22, 1995 · about 11:30 pm local time
- Place
- Taft, Texas · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- No one was hurt; 1 person was on board or involved.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Air Tractor AT-401
- Registration
- N9190Q · registry record · serial 401-0925
- Damage
- Destroyed
- Flight
- Aerial application (crop spraying) flight · agricultural flying rules (Part 137)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
AS THE PILOT COMPLETED HIS SECOND PASS, HE LOOKED BACK 'TO SEE WHERE THE SPRAY WAS GOING,' AND THE AIRPLANE'S RIGHT WING STRUCK THE TOP TWO STATIC WIRES ON AN ELECTRICAL TRANSMISSION LINE. THE AIRPLANE THEN ENTERED A NOSE DOWN ATTITUDE 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; rotorcraft: helicopter
- Flight time: 5,383 hours in all; 1,343 in this make and model; 380 in the last 90 days; 150 in the last 30 days; 5,234 as pilot in command; 150 on instruments
- Medical certificate: Class 2 (valid medical--w/ waivers/lim.)
- Seat: ctr
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 798 hours
- Last inspection: annual inspection, September 21, 1994; 442 hours since
- Maximum gross weight: 6,000 lb
- Seats: 1
- Landing gear: fixed
- Engine: P&W R-1340-AN1 (piston); 0 hours total
- Fire on the ground
The flight
- Departed from: 9R5 Portland TX at 11:20 pm
- Flight plan: none
- Runway 0
Weather at the time
- Light: dusk
- Wind: from 050° at 5 knots
- Visibility: 7 statute miles
- Sky: overcast at 11,000 ft; not recorded
- Temperature: 88°F (31°C), dew point 77°F (25°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 N9190Q 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.