Air Tractor AT301 accident near Williams Afb, Arizona, August 27, 1985
On August 27, 1985 at about 11:45 am local time, a Air Tractor AT301, registered N3168U, was substantially damaged in an accident near Williams Afb, Arizona (Williams Afb airport). 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
- August 27, 1985 · about 11:45 am local time
- Place
- Williams Afb, Arizona · Williams Afb · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- No one was hurt; 1 person was on board or involved.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Air Tractor AT301
- Registration
- N3168U · no longer on the register · serial 301-0565
- 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 MAKING HIS FIRST SWATH RUN,DURING THE HOURS OF DARKNESS,THE PILOT BECAME DISORENTED AND FLEW INTO AN AREA WITH TALL ELECTRICAL TRANSMISSION LINES. HE DESCENDED INTO TREES BENEATH THE LINES IN HIS ATTEMPT TO MISS THEM.
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; instrument: airplane; rotorcraft: helicopter
- Flight time: 7,000 hours in all; 250 in this make and model; 200 in the last 90 days; 180 in the last 30 days; 6,000 as pilot in command
- Medical certificate: Class 2 (valid medical--no waivers/lim.)
- Seat: ctr
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 550 hours
- Last inspection: annual inspection, August 10, 1985
- Maximum gross weight: 5,000 lb
- Seats: 1
- Landing gear: fixed
- Engine: P&W R-1340-AN1 (piston); 0 hours total
The flight
- Departed from: P10 Chandler AZ at 11:30 am
- Flight plan: none
- Runway 0
Weather at the time
- Light: night, dark
- Wind: from 150° at 4 knots
- Visibility: 35 statute miles
- Sky: clear
- Temperature: 90°F (32°C), dew point 68°F (20°C)
- Altimeter: 30.00 inHg
- Observation at 10:45 am from PHX, 17 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.