Air Tractor AT-502B accident near Fort Pierce, Florida, May 31, 2001
On May 31, 2001 at about 12:00 pm local time, a Air Tractor AT-502B, registered N6067A, was substantially damaged in an accident near Fort Pierce, Florida (Southestern Airport). 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 loss of engine power during takeoff/initial climb due to compressor turbine blade separation.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made October 5, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- May 31, 2001 · about 12:00 pm local time
- Place
- Fort Pierce, Florida · Southestern Airport · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- 1 person had minor injuries.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Air Tractor AT-502B
- Registration
- N6067A · no longer on the register · serial 502B-0245
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Aerial application (crop spraying) flight · agricultural flying rules (Part 137)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
The pilot stated that he had just taken off from the Southeastern Crop Service's private field, and he was about 100 feet in the air, when he heard a loud bang, and saw pieces coming out of the tailpipe. The pilot further stated that he then initiated a forced landing to an orange grove, and during the landing the airplane collided with trees and incurred substantial damage. An FAA inspector and a representative from Pratt and Whitney Canada, Montreal, Canada, conducted on-scene and follow-up examinations of the accident airplane. According to the Pratt and Whitney Canada representative, examination of the engine showed no sign of preimpact damage to the reduction gear box. In addition, the Pratt and Whitney Canada representative further stated that both the downstream damage, as well as the damage to the compressor turbine shroud were consistent with there having been a high energy impact due to compressor turbine blade fragments. The operator later provided portions of the engine to the NTSB after having first sent them to a laboratory he had contracted to conduct his own analysis. The NTSB conducted an examination of the engine parts the operator provided at the NTSB's Metallurgical Laboratory, Washington DC., and the examination showed the presence of damage consistent with overstress separations in cast materials.
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; single-engine sea; instrument: airplane
- Flight time: 30,000 hours in all; 6,000 in this make and model; 122 in the last 90 days; 37 in the last 30 days; 30,000 as pilot in command
- Last flight review: March 2, 2000
- Medical certificate: Class 2
- Seat: sngl
- Injury: minor injuries
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 3,021.3 hours
- Last inspection: 100-hour inspection, April 5, 2001; 69 hours since
- Maximum gross weight: 8,000 lb
- Seats: 1
- Landing gear: fixed
- Engine: Pratt-Whitney PT6A-34AG (turboprop); 0 hours total
The flight
- Departed from: FD30 Fort Pierce FL at 12:00 pm
- Flight plan: none
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Wind: at 2 knots
- Visibility: 10 statute miles
- Sky: clear
- Temperature: 72°F (22°C), dew point 68°F (20°C)
- Altimeter: 29.89 inHg
- Observation at 11:53 am from FPR
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.