Weatherly 620B accident near Yuma, Arizona, February 20, 1999
On February 20, 1999 at about 6:09 am local time, a Weatherly 620B, registered N2014U, was destroyed in an accident near Yuma, Arizona. 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 failure to maintain an adequate clearance from the power lines during an aerial application flight. A factor in the accident was the dark night lighting conditions.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made October 5, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- February 20, 1999 · about 6:09 am local time
- Place
- Yuma, Arizona · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- 1 person was killed.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Weatherly 620B
- Registration
- N2014U · registry record · serial 1566
- 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 completing an aerial spray application when the airplane began a climbing left turn. The airplane contacted power lines, which were located at the edge of the field. The lighting conditions consisted of a dark night and the moon was below the western horizon. No preimpact mechanical failures were identified.
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: 24,000 hours in all; 1,500 in this make and model; 150 in the last 90 days; 50 in the last 30 days; 24,000 as pilot in command
- Medical certificate: Class 2 (valid medical--w/ waivers/lim.)
- Seat: ctr
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 2,066 hours
- Last inspection: 100-hour inspection, November 23, 1998; 126 hours since
- Maximum gross weight: 4,000 lb
- Seats: 1
- Landing gear: fixed
- Engine: P&W R-985 AN-14B (piston); 0 hours total
- Fire on the ground
The flight
- Departed from: Somerton AZ at 5:40 am
- Flight plan: none
- Runway 0
Weather at the time
- Light: night, dark
- Wind: from 360° at 10 knots
- Visibility: 10 statute miles
- Sky: scat at 20,000 ft
- Temperature: 66°F (19°C), dew point 36°F (2°C)
- Altimeter: 29.00 inHg
- Observation at 6:00 am from YUM, 2 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.