NTSB Factual Report

On July 21, 2001, at 1050 central daylight time, a Snow 600-S2C, N8703V, piloted by a commercial pilot, sustained substantial damage during an in-flight collision with the terrain following a loss of control while maneuvering near Plainfield, Wisconsin. Visual meteorological conditions prevailed at the time of the accident. The aerial application flight was operating under the provisions of 14 CFR Part 137 and was not on a flight plan. The pilot, the sole occupant, reported no injuries. The flight departed Bancroft, Wisconsin, at 1035 and was spraying agricultural fungicide at the time of the accident.

According to the pilot's written statement, he was spraying a potato field with a load of 150 gallons of fungicide and 70 gallons of fuel at the time of the accident. The pilot reported that while in a turn after a spray run, "... the aircraft felt to slow and the controls were mushy. I lowered the nose, shallowed the turn and added full power. However, I was unable to recover from the near stall before contact with the ground occured. The aircraft contacted the ground in a flat, level attitude with an east heading in an unfarmed field about 200 yards west of the potato field. The terrain was flat and there were no obstacles."

The pilot did not report any mechanical malfunctions on his accident report.

NTSB Probable Cause

The pilot not maintaining aircraft control while maneuvering on the aerial application flight. A factor to the accident was the encountered stall/mush at a low altitude.