# NTSB ATL04CA185: Air Tractor AT-502B, N90375, Belle Glade, FL, September 15, 2004 - Type: NTSB accident investigation - Classification: Accident · No injuries · Data collection · Final report - Date: September 15, 2004, 12:05 local (16:05 UTC) - Place: Belle Glade, FL - Coordinates: 28.0575, -81.762779 - Nearby events: https://openairdocs.org/map.md?lat=28.0575&lon=-81.7628&mi=10 - Phase of flight: [Enroute](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb-phases/400) (OpenAirDocs' grouping) - Highest injury: No injuries - Injuries: 1 uninjured - Status: Completed, report December 3, 2004 - Report: Approved by Office Director - NTSB case key (mKey): 60139 - NTSB case page: https://web.ntsb.gov/investigations/?ntsbnumber=ATL04CA185 - NTSB report (PDF, downloads): https://data.ntsb.gov/carol-repgen/api/Aviation/ReportMain/GenerateNewestReport/60139/pdf - Page: https://openairdocs.org/ntsb/ATL04CA185 ## Probable cause The pilot's inadequate preflight inspection and a loss of engine power due to water contamination of the fuel. ## Sequence of events In NTSB's coding before 2008 (https://www.ntsb.gov/GILS/Documents/codman.pdf). - Loss of engine power(total) - nonmechanical, cruise - fluid,fuel - contamination,water (cause) - aircraft preflight - inadequate, pilot in command (cause) - Forced landing, emergency descent/landing - On ground/water encounter with terrain/water, emergency descent/landing - terrain condition - berm - terrain condition - ditch ## Analysis The airplane was topped off with 31 gallons JP-5 from the operator's above-ground 8,000-gallon supply tank. The pilot stated he did not sump the airplane's fuel tanks prior to departure. The flight departed the airstrip and was at 500 feet above ground level when the airplane lost engine power. The pilot's attempts to restore engine power were unsuccessful, and the pilot executed an emergency landing on a dirt road. The airplane collided with a dirt berm and spun into a ditch. Examination of the airplane revealed approximately two quarts of water was retrieved from each wing tank of the airplane, approximately one pint of water was retrieved from the fuel filter bowl, and the engine fuel filter was found saturated with water. Examination of the fuel supply tank revealed water in the tank and tank filter. The pilot stated the supply tank had not been used to fuel any airplanes since before Hurricane Frances impacted the Belle Glade, Florida, area with heavy rain and high winds on September 5, 2004. The pilot examined the tank and reported the vent lids on the tank could be lifted open, the pick-up tube for the nozzle extended to the bottom of the tank, and the tank was not equipped with a means by which it could be sumped or drained from its lowest point. ## Factual narrative On September 15, 2004, about 1205 eastern daylight time, an Air Tractor AT-502B, N90375, registered to and operated by Gladeview Aerial Service, Inc., collided with a dirt berm following a loss of engine power shortly after takeoff from a private strip in Belle Glade, Florida. The agricultural flight was operated under the provisions of Title 14 CFR Part 137 with no flight plan filed. Visual meteorological conditions prevailed. The commercial pilot reported no injuries, and the airplane received substantial damage. The flight departed Belle Glade, Florida, about 1200 on September 15, 2004. Prior to the flight, the airplane was topped off with 31 gallons JP-5 from the operator's above-ground 8,000-gallon supply tank. The pilot stated he departed the airstrip from the south and was at 500 feet above ground level when the airplane lost engine power. The pilot's attempts to restore engine power were unsuccessful, and the pilot executed an emergency landing on a dirt road. During landing roll, the airplane's right wing tip collided with a dirt berm, and the airplane spun around and rolled tail-first into a ditch. Examination of the airplane revealed damage to the main landing gear, outboard right wing spar, and empennage. Approximately two quarts of water was retrieved from each wing tank of the airplane, approximately one pint of water was retrieved from the fuel filter bowl, and the engine fuel filter was found saturated with water. The pilot stated he did not sump the airplane's fuel tanks prior to departure. Examination of the operator's above-ground 8,000-gallon supply tank revealed water in the tank and tank filter. The pilot stated the supply tank had not been used to fuel any airplanes since before Hurricane Frances impacted the Belle Glade, Florida, area with heavy rain and high winds on September 5, 2004. After the water was discovered in the supply tank, the pilot examined the tank and reported the vent lids on the tank could be lifted open, the pick-up tube for the nozzle extended to the bottom of the tank, and the tank was not equipped with a means by which it could be sumped or drained from its lowest point. A review of the FAA Approved AT-502B Airplane Flight Manual revealed in Section 2, Normal Procedures, Preflight, Walk-Around Inspection, Item 11 stated: "Drain left wing fuel sump, drain header tank sump and valve sump," and Item 24 stated, "Drain right-hand wing fuel sump." ## Aircraft - Registration: [N90375](https://openairdocs.org/deregistered/N90375-2021-01-30), registration cancelled 2021-01-30, S/N 502B-0580, built 1999 (OpenAirDocs) - Reported make and model: Air Tractor AT-502B - Registry model: [Air Tractor AT-502B](https://openairdocs.org/model/air-tractor-at-502b) (registry code 0390307) (OpenAirDocs) - Registry engine: [Pratt & Whitney PT6A series](https://openairdocs.org/engine/pratt-whitney-pt6a-series) (registry code 52034, reciprocating) (OpenAirDocs) - Category: Airplane - Serial number: 502B-0580 - Engines: Pratt & Whitney PT6A turbo prop - Damage: Substantial damage - Flight: Aerial application, Part 137 - Registered owner: Gladeview Aerial Service, Inc. - Airworthiness certificate: Special, Restricted (Special) - Departed: PVT, Belle Glade, FL - Airport: PVT, Belle Glade, FL, runway 18 ## Flight crew As NTSB recorded them. NTSB leaves out names. - Pilot; age 47; injuries: none; commercial; airplane ratings: multi-engine land, single-engine land; instrument ratings: airplane; medical: class 2; flight hours: 8,000 total, 2,000 in this make and model, 100 in the last 90 days ## Weather - Conditions: Visual (VMC), Day ## FAA reports on this event (1) The FAA's own accident and incident reports, matched to the aircraft by N-number and date (OpenAirDocs). - [Accident 20040915034019A](https://openairdocs.org/incident/20040915034019A), Sep 15, 2004: Airtrc AT502B, Bell Glades, FL, Substantial damage. (-23) On September 15, 2004, on about 1200, an air tractor inc. AT-502-B aircraft N90375, registered to gladeview aerial service inc. operating as a 14 CFR… From the NTSB's public API. Aircraft are matched to registry aircraft by N-number and event date, checked against the reported serial number, make and model; the registry's history has gaps, so older matches can be wrong. Compare the reported make and model. --- OpenAirDocs.org is an independent research project of [Contrail Labs](https://contraillabs.com/). It is not affiliated with the FAA or the NTSB. Source documents are U.S. government works in the public domain.