Air Tractor AT-301 accident near Niland, California, July 22, 1988
On July 22, 1988 at about 3:45 am local time, a Air Tractor AT-301, registered N8719S, was substantially damaged in an accident near Niland, California. 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
- July 22, 1988 · about 3:45 am local time
- Place
- Niland, California · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- No one was hurt; 1 person was on board or involved.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Air Tractor AT-301
- Registration
- N8719S · no longer on the register · serial 301-0178
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Aerial application (crop spraying) flight · agricultural flying rules (Part 137)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
JUST AFTER TAKEOFF, THE PILOT MADE A RIGHT TURN TO LOCATE THE GROUND FLAGGERS AND TO AVOID TRANSMISSION WIRES. THE PILOT, UNABLE TO LOCATE THE FLAGGERS, INITIATED A CLIMB TO AVOID WIRES AND RISING TERRAIN. HOWEVER, THE AIRPLANE DID NOT GAIN SUFFICIENT ALTITUDE AND COLLIDED WITH THE WIRES AND, SUBSEQUENTLY, THE TERRAIN. THERE WERE NO REPORTED MECHANICAL FAILURES OR MALFUNCTIONS OF THE AIRPLANE.
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: flight instructor, commercial pilot
- Ratings: multi-engine land; single-engine land; instructor: airplane single-engine; instrument: airplane
- Flight time: 8,373 hours in all; 3,967 in this make and model; 71 in the last 90 days; 35 in the last 30 days; 8,218 as pilot in command; 930 on instruments
- Medical certificate: Class 2 (valid medical--no waivers/lim.)
- Seat: ctr
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 4,665 hours
- Last inspection: annual inspection, April 28, 1988; 73 hours since
- Maximum gross weight: 5,000 lb
- Seats: 1
- Landing gear: fixed
- Engine: P&W R-340-AN1 (piston); 0 hours total
The flight
- Flight plan: none
- Runway 0
Weather at the time
- Light: night, bright
- Visibility: 20 statute miles
- Sky: broken clouds at 12,000 ft; not recorded
- Temperature: 95°F (35°C), dew point 0°F (-18°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 N8719S 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.