Air Tractor AT-401 accident near Clarksdale, Mississippi, May 30, 1989
On May 30, 1989 at about 1:45 pm local time, a Air Tractor AT-401, registered N1012H, was destroyed in an accident near Clarksdale, Mississippi. It was an aerial application (crop spraying) flight under agricultural flying rules (Part 137). 1 person was seriously injured. The weather was visual conditions (good weather).
The NTSB's probable cause their words, unchanged
THE PILOT FAILED TO MAINTAIN AIRSPEED RESULTING IN THE AIRPLANE STALLING AND DESCENDING OUT OF CONTROL.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made October 5, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- May 30, 1989 · about 1:45 pm local time
- Place
- Clarksdale, Mississippi · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- 1 person was seriously injured.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Air Tractor AT-401
- Registration
- N1012H · registry record · serial 401-0715
- Damage
- Destroyed
- Flight
- Aerial application (crop spraying) flight · agricultural flying rules (Part 137)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
THE PLT WAS TURNING DOWNWIND FOR ANOTHER AERIAL APPLICATION PASS WHEN THE ACFT STALLED AND DROPPED INTO A RIGHT WING LOW DESCENT WHICH BECAME ALMOST VERTICAL PRIOR TO GROUND CONTACT. THE RADIAL ENGINE WAS BURIED TO A DEPTH OF 4 FT IN THE CULTIVATED SOIL.
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: 875 hours in all; 48 in this make and model; 77 in the last 90 days; 12 in the last 30 days; 817 as pilot in command
- Medical certificate: Class 2 (valid medical--w/ waivers/lim.)
- Seat: frt
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 21 hours
- Last inspection: annual inspection, April 11, 1989; 21 hours since
- Maximum gross weight: 7,860 lb
- Seats: 1
- Landing gear: fixed
- Engine: P&W R-1340-AN (piston); 0 hours total
The flight
- Departed from: Clarksdale MS at 1:40 pm
- Flight plan: none
- Runway 0
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Wind: from 190° at 4 knots
- Visibility: 5 statute miles
- Sky: broken clouds at 25,000 ft; not recorded
- Temperature: 72°F (22°C), dew point 68°F (20°C)
- Altimeter: 30.00 inHg
- Observation at 12:50 pm from GWO, 48 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 N1012H 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.