Air Tractor AT-301 accident near Swiftown, Mississippi, July 18, 1987
On July 18, 1987 at about 4:30 pm local time, a Air Tractor AT-301, registered N7310N, was substantially damaged in an accident near Swiftown, Mississippi. 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 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 18, 1987 · about 4:30 pm local time
- Place
- Swiftown, Mississippi
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- 1 person had minor injuries.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Air Tractor AT-301
- Registration
- N7310N · no longer on the register · serial 3010649
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Aerial application (crop spraying) flight · agricultural flying rules (Part 137)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
WHILE SPRAYING COTTON, SEVERE VIBRATION WAS FELT THROUGHOUT THE ACFT & THE PLT ELECTED A FORCED LDG. DURING THE FLARE, THE THROTTLE WAS ADVANCED TO RAISE THE NOSE, & THE PLT DISCOVERED THE ENG HAD TOTALLY FAILED. THE ACFT FLIPPED INVERTED ON TOUCH DOWN. AN EXAM OF THE ENG REVEALED THAT THE CRANKSHAFT ASSY, P/N 270458, HAD FAILED AT THE THROUGH BOLT LOCATION OF THE FRONT CRANKSHAFT CHEEK.
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
- Flight time: 14,000 hours in all; 460 in this make and model; 150 in the last 90 days; 13,943 as pilot in command
- Medical certificate: Class 2 (valid medical--w/ waivers/lim.)
- Seat: ctr
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 459 hours
- Last inspection: annual inspection, May 1, 1987
- Maximum gross weight: 7,050 lb
- Seats: 1
- Landing gear: fixed
- Engine: P&W R-1340-AN1 (piston); 0 hours total
- Operator: Pugh City Flying Ser.,Inc.
The flight
- Flight plan: none
- Runway 0
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Wind: from 160° at 4 knots
- Visibility: 6 statute miles
- Sky: scat at 3,000 ft
- Temperature: 90°F (32°C), dew point 66°F (19°C)
- Altimeter: 30.00 inHg
- Observation at 11:50 am from GWO, 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.
Other NTSB records under N7310N 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.