Air Tractor AT301 accident near Weston, Oregon, April 30, 1985
On April 30, 1985 at about 4:09 pm local time, a Air Tractor AT301, registered N3652F, was destroyed in an accident near Weston, Oregon. 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 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
- April 30, 1985 · about 4:09 pm local time
- Place
- Weston, Oregon · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- 1 person was seriously injured.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Air Tractor AT301
- Registration
- N3652F · no longer on the register · serial 301-0267
- Damage
- Destroyed
- Flight
- Aerial application (crop spraying) flight · agricultural flying rules (Part 137)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
DURING THIS AERIAL APPLICATION FLIGHT THE AIRCRAFT CLIPPED A TREE AND THEN IMPACTED WITH THE GROUND. THE PILOT WAS SERIOUSLY INJURED WHEN THE STITCHING ON THE SHOULDER HARNESS FAILED AND THE PILOT WAS THROWN FORWARD.
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: helicopter; rotorcraft: helicopter
- Flight time: 2,320 hours in all; 154 in this make and model; 140 in the last 90 days; 1,809 as pilot in command
- Medical certificate: Class 2 (valid medical--no waivers/lim.)
- Seat: ctr
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 2,258 hours
- Last inspection: annual inspection, June 4, 1984; 304 hours since
- Maximum gross weight: 6,600 lb
- Seats: 1
- Landing gear: fixed
- Engine: P&W R1340-AN1 (piston); 0 hours total
The flight
- Flight plan: none
- Runway 0
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Visibility: 20 statute miles
- Sky: clear
- Temperature: 48°F (9°C), dew point 0°F (-18°C)
- Observation at 9:30 am
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.