Air Tractor AT-401 accident near Hornersville, Missouri, April 5, 1990
On April 5, 1990 at about 6:00 pm local time, a Air Tractor AT-401, registered N1015A, was substantially damaged in an accident near Hornersville, Missouri (Hornersville airport). 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
FAILURE OF AN ENGINE CYLINDER.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made October 5, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- April 5, 1990 · about 6:00 pm local time
- Place
- Hornersville, Missouri · Hornersville · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- No one was hurt; 1 person was on board or involved.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Air Tractor AT-401
- Registration
- N1015A · registry record · serial 401-0735
- 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 SAID THAT SHORTLY AFTER TAKEOFF, DURING AN AERIAL APPLICATION OPERATION, THE ENGINE FAILED. AN EMERGENCY LANDING WAS MADE IN A SOFT, MUDDY FARM FIELD, RESULTING IN A NOSE OVER AND SUBSTANTIAL DAMAGE TO THE ACFT. A POST-ACCIDENT INVESTIGATION REVEALED THE #9 CYLINDER ON THE POWERPLANT HAD FAILED.
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: 3,750 hours in all; 150 in this make and model; 130 in the last 90 days; 110 in the last 30 days; 3,650 as pilot in command
- Medical certificate: Class 2 (valid medical--no waivers/lim.)
- Seat: left
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 57 hours
- Last inspection: annual inspection, September 27, 1989; 57 hours since
- Maximum gross weight: 5,000 lb
- Seats: 1
- Landing gear: fixed
- Engine: P&W R-1340-AN1 (piston); 0 hours total
The flight
- Departed from: 37M Hornersville MO at 6:00 pm
- Flight plan: none
- Runway 18, 2,640 ft by 50 ft
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Wind: from 180° at 5 knots
- Visibility: 15 statute miles
- Sky: clear
- Temperature: 61°F (16°C), dew point 0°F (-18°C)
- Altimeter: 29.00 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 N1015A 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.