| Crash location | 32.911944°N, 100.540833°W |
| Nearest city | Rotan, TX
32.852050°N, 100.465665°W 6.0 miles away |
| Tail number | N734BS |
|---|---|
| Accident date | 15 Jun 2018 |
| Aircraft type | Cessna 172N |
| Additional details: | None |
On June 15, 2018, at 1538 central daylight time, a Cessna 172N, N734BS, was destroyed when it impacted a power lines and terrain near Rotan, Texas. The pilot and passenger were fatally injured. The aircraft was registered to and operated by Aero Photo under the provisions of Title 14 Code of Federal Regulations Part 91 as a business flight. Visual meteorological conditions existed at the time of the accident. The flight was not on a flight plan. The flight originated from the Midland Airpark (MDD), Midland, Texas, about 1331, and the Spicewood Airport (88R), Spicewood, Texas was the intended destination.
The airplane had departed 88R earlier in the day to perform aerial photography missions. After completing several missions the airplane landed at MDD, reportedly to refuel. After departing MDD on the accident flight, the airplane flew photography missions near Midland, Texas, Odessa, Texas, and Lubbock, Texas. After completing the missions near Lubbock the airplane traveled southeast to return to 88R.
The airplane impacted a non-electrified power lines that crossed a canyon near Rotan, Texas. The power line that was struck was suspended from wooden poles about 20 ft tall that were on the peaks of the adjacent ridges forming the canyon. The power lines were estimated to be about 130 ft above the floor of the canyon. The airplane came to rest inverted about 900 feet from the power lines and the direction from the center of the canyon where the power line crossed to the accident site was about 50°. The aft fuselage was broken near the baggage compartment and the entire aft fuselage and tail were bent over the inverted fuselage. Both wings appeared intact and still attached to the fuselage and wing struts. The ailerons and flaps remained attached to the wings. The tail surfaces were intact and the rudder and elevator remained attached. The engine was separated with the prop still attached to the engine. A portion of power line cable was wrapped around the crankshaft aft of the propeller an estimated 15 turns. Access to the site was limited due to the topography and the position of the wreckage was not suitable for a detailed on-scene examination. For these reasons, the examination was limited until the recovery of the airplane from the accident scene.