HILLSBORO, ND, USA
N551Y
GRUMMAN G-164
The pilot reported he was performing aerial application and he pulled up late from a swath run and impacted the top of a tree. He said the airplane was still flying but as it slowed he lost control and impacted the terrain.
On May 19, 1994, about 2000 central daylight time, a Grumman G-164, N551Y, operated by Pro Air Service, Inc. was destroyed during an aerial application swath run near Hillsboro, North Dakota. The solo commercial pilot sustained serious injuries. The local, 14 CFR Part 137 flight originated about 1930. A flight plan was not filed and visual meteorological conditions prevailed. The pilot reported he "pulled up a little late and caught the top of a cottonwood tree" which damaged the leading edge of the left wing. He wrote "the airplane was still flying for a little bit, but as it slowed down it started to go into a spin. I got the spin stopped and I was trying to dump the load, but ran out of room and hit the ground."
the pilot's failure to maintain clearance from a tree.
Source: NTSB Aviation Accident Database
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