Wirestrike involving a Cessna A188/A1, VH-KQB, 9 km east of Mindarie, South Australia, on 31 May 1997

The aircraft was being used to spread dressing on a property near Mindarie in South Australia. The landowner had not provided a map of the treatment area, instead, giving the pilot a preflight briefing that included drawing a diagram of the property with his heel on the ground. The property was located just to the north of a heavily wooded road running east to west. The property owner included the location of known powerlines in his briefing to the pilot.

The pilot began the job by performing the clean-up runs, filling in areas not suitable for the longer swath runs. He flew these runs primarily from the north-east. As he set up for the first swath run by flying east along the road before turning north to the property, the aircraft struck a powerline. The powerline was strung across the road to a derelict building.

The pilot reported that the powerline separated from a point near the disused building, and that approximately 30 m of line snapped back across the aircraft, damaging the left wing and aileron. The pilot landed the aircraft safely in an adjacent field. The pilot reported that the owner had not advised him of the location of the powerline because the owner was not aware of its existence. He also reported that he did not consider the likelihood of a powerline in that location due to the rundown nature of the building to which it was connected.