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Date: | Friday 19 June 1992 |
Time: | 16:13 |
Type: | Grumman TS-2A Tracker |
Owner/operator: | California Department of Forestry |
Registration: | N427DF |
MSN: | 136641/550 |
Fatalities: | Fatalities: 1 / Occupants: 1 |
Aircraft damage: | Destroyed |
Category: | Accident |
Location: | Railroad Flat, CA -
United States of America
|
Phase: | Manoeuvring (airshow, firefighting, ag.ops.) |
Nature: | Fire fighting |
Departure airport: | (O22) |
Destination airport: | -22 |
Investigating agency: | NTSB |
Confidence Rating: | Accident investigation report completed and information captured |
Narrative:Accident occurred during firefighting operations. AT-92 made a stable and level approach to the drop zone. While on climb out, the aircraft was observed to impact trees, start a roll to the left, and then impact the ground in a nearly inverted position.
The California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection report concluded that the pilot was below the minimum altitude required by CDF policy. The smoke column may have obscured the tall trees and/or the rising terrain at a critical point in the final leg of the drop pattern, contributing to the pilot's failure to see the tall trees in time to take preventative measures. While the evidence does not support mechanical failure as the cause, it could not be conclusively ruled out.
(1) Pilot Roger Stark, chief pilot of Serve Air. Crashed at Railroad Flat during water drop near fire at Calaveras County.
Sources:
California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection, Airtanker 92, Final Accident Investigation Report, November 3, 1992
NTSB:
http://www.ntsb.gov/ntsb/brief.asp?ev_id=20001211X14926 (1) Santa Cruz Sentinel 21 June 1992, p9
Revision history:
Date/time | Contributor | Updates |
24-Oct-2008 10:30 |
ASN archive |
Added |
10-Dec-2010 00:07 |
ASASA |
Updated [Aircraft type, Registration, Source, Narrative] |
14-Aug-2022 08:15 |
TB |
Updated [Operator, Source, Narrative] |
14-Aug-2022 08:30 |
TB |
Updated [Cn, Location, Narrative] |
29-May-2023 21:28 |
Ron Averes |
Updated [[Cn, Location, Narrative]] |