Loss of control in flight: Air Tractor AT-802F Fire Boss, N10122, fatal accident occurred on July 10, 2024, near Helena, Montana

• Location: Helena, Montana 
• Accident Number: WPR24FA238 
• Date & Time: July 10, 2024, 12:10 Local
• Registration: N10122 
• Aircraft: AIR TRACTOR INC AT-802A 
• Aircraft Damage: Substantial 
• Defining Event: Loss of control in flight 
• Injuries: 1 Fatal 
• Flight Conducted Under: Public aircraft

https://data.ntsb.gov/carol-repgen/api/Aviation/ReportMain/GenerateNewestReport/194667/pdf

https://data.ntsb.gov/Docket?ProjectID=194667

On July 10, 2024, about 1210 mountain daylight time, an Air Tractor AT-802A (Fire Boss) airplane, N10122, was substantially damaged when it was involved in an accident near Helena, Montana. The pilot was fatally injured. The airplane was operated as public use aircraft for the purpose of firefighting.

The pilot of the single-engine air tanker flew as part of a group of four airplanes and was in the No. 2 position. The group departed from their home airport in support of aerial firefighting efforts and arrived at the destination 1 hour and 44 minutes later. Once they arrived on scene, near the wildfire, they flew to a nearby lake to begin the water scooping portion of the mission; the accident occurred during the first scoop sequence.

Witnesses on the lake and in their homes reported that the lead airplane successfully completed its scoop and lifted off from the lake. The float-equipped accident airplane was beginning to scoop when witnesses observed the airplane “moving unsteadily” before the left wing dipped into the water, the right wing rose into the air, the airplane veered left and subsequently impacted the rock face. 

During the initial water scoop, the lead pilot transmitted an instruction to abort the scoop due to a tailwind. As the lead airplane climbed away from the lake, the accident airplane had descended toward the water. The pilot did not acknowledge the abort instruction, and the airplane began to drift to the left. A review of the airplane’s SpiderTrack flight tracking data showed that during the final 1,447 ft of the water scoop, the airplane drifted about 10° left while on the water. The lead airplane’s flight data showed that the accident airplane’s drift to the left, away from the middle of the waterway and toward the shoreline and rock face, occurred simultaneously with the lead airplane’s turn to the left. The pilot did not take any evasive action to avoid the rock face. 

According to the operator, this was the accident pilot’s first fire season. The pilot’s training history showed that during tactical flying, the pilot at times lost situational awareness, which led to a regression in fundamental flying skills and freezing at the flight controls. 

Given these documented deficiencies, the pilot likely experienced a similar degradation in performance during the accident sequence.

Postaccident examination of the wreckage revealed no preaccident mechanical malfunctions or failures with the airplane that would have precluded normal operation. 

Toxicology results indicated a low level of cetirizine in the pilot’s postmortem femoral blood; with the low level found, the pilot was not likely to have experienced any significant impairment effects at the time of the accident. Additionally, a very low level measured concentration of morphine was identified in the pilot’s urine. The positive toxicology result is nonspecific and may have been found after opioid drug use or poppy seed consumption. Given the low level detected, it is unlikely that the pilot was impaired by the effects of morphine at the time of the accident.

- Probable Cause: The pilot’s loss of situational awareness during the water scoop due to task overload while operating in a multi-airplane tactical firefighting environment, which resulted in the pilot’s failure to maintain directional control and the airplane’s collision with terrain. 

The pilot’s hire date with Dauntless Air was January 10, 2024. According to the operator, this was the pilot’s first fire season. According to information provided by the operator, as of April 6, 2024, the pilot performed 122 scoops while in training. She had amassed 25.2 hours of flight time during training and an additional 42.8 hours of ferry flight time relocating airplanes. The operator stated that the pilot’s total Fire Boss experience before the accident included 150 total scoops and about 96.4 hours of flight time.

The following information about the pilot’s training was provided by a representative of Dauntless Air: 

The operator’s Chief Pilot/Director of Operations stated that he had flown with the pilot on at least 4 flights and noted that she had been lagging behind the rest of her class but was showing improvement. He added that instructors had identified her as lagging behind the rest of the class in the tactical environment, specifically in situational awareness and formation flight operations with four aircraft. Additionally, he reported that one instructor flagged her as not ready for tactical or for a check ride. However, the pilot gained more experience, including numerous ferry flights, practicing formation, and a mock check ride prior to conducting a final check ride.

A former Dauntless Air flight instructor reported that he had flown with the accident pilot 10 different times, of which 4 times were during initial training. He stated that during one of the early flights, he noticed that the accident pilot lost situational awareness on the return flight back to the airport. He believed that the accident pilot may have experienced similar situational awareness issues while conducting ferry flights when she ferried an aircraft. The flight instructor added that when the accident pilot was tasked with more than one item, she would get overwhelmed easily. The flight instructor also recalled that in one case, the accident pilot “just kind of froze on the controls, when joining up on an airplane” and he had to take control of the airplane from her, which startled her.