Air Tractor AT-502B accident near Portales, New Mexico, September 2, 1998
On September 2, 1998 at about 11:40 pm local time, a Air Tractor AT-502B, registered N50620, was destroyed in an accident near Portales, New Mexico. 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 pilot's failure to maintain adequate altitude/clearance during an aerial application. Also causal was the inadvertent ground loop/swerve during the landing.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made October 5, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- September 2, 1998 · about 11:40 pm local time
- Place
- Portales, New Mexico · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- 1 person had minor injuries.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Air Tractor AT-502B
- Registration
- N50620 · no longer on the register · serial 502B-0457
- Damage
- Destroyed
- Flight
- Aerial application (crop spraying) flight · agricultural flying rules (Part 137)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
The pilot was flying westbound into the sun (275 degrees, 7 degrees above the horizon) during an aerial application pass over a cotton field. There was a circular pivotal sprinkler system which extended from the northern center of the field to the southeast. The pilot said that he looked over to adjust his onboard global positioning system and he struck the sprinkler. The impact separated the left main landing gear and initiated a fire in the right hand forward part of the cockpit. The pilot landed the airplane in the adjacent peanut field and the airplane ground looped during the emergency landing attempt. The airplane was destroyed during the subsequent post landing fire.
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: multi-engine land; single-engine land
- Flight time: 7,255 hours in all; 750 in this make and model; 290 in the last 90 days; 170 in the last 30 days; 7,195 as pilot in command
- Medical certificate: Class 2 (valid medical--w/ waivers/lim.)
- Seat: ctr
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 780 hours
- Last inspection: annual inspection, August 31, 1998; 40 hours since
- Maximum gross weight: 8,000 lb
- Seats: 1
- Landing gear: fixed
- Engine: P&W PT6-34AG (turboprop); 0 hours total
The flight
- Departed from: NONE Private Strip TX at 10:15 pm
- Destination: NONE Sudan TX
- Flight plan: none
- Runway 0
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Wind: from 140° at 10 knots
- Visibility: 7 statute miles
- Sky: broken clouds at 23,000 ft; scat at 12,000 ft
- Temperature: 91°F (33°C), dew point 46°F (8°C)
- Altimeter: 30.00 inHg
- Observation at 10:55 pm from CVN, 15 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.