# NTSB CEN10LA455: Garlick OH-58A, N305SD, Kountze, TX, July 31, 2010 - Type: NTSB accident investigation - Classification: Accident · Serious injuries · Limited investigation · Final report - Date: July 31, 2010, 12:15 local (17:15 UTC) - Place: Kountze, TX - Coordinates: 30.409721, -94.239723 - Nearby events: https://openairdocs.org/map.md?lat=30.4097&lon=-94.2397&mi=10 - Phase of flight: [Landing](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb-phases/550) (OpenAirDocs' grouping) - Defining event: [Landing-flare/touchdown: Tailstrike](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb-events/091) - Highest injury: Serious injuries - Injuries: 1 serious - Status: Completed, report April 7, 2011 - Report: Approved by Office Director - NTSB office: Central Region - Parties: FAA Flight Standards District Office - NTSB case key (mKey): 76823 - NTSB case page: https://web.ntsb.gov/investigations/?ntsbnumber=CEN10LA455 - NTSB report (PDF, downloads): https://data.ntsb.gov/carol-repgen/api/Aviation/ReportMain/GenerateNewestReport/76823/pdf - NTSB docket: https://data.ntsb.gov/Docket?ProjectID=76823 - Page: https://openairdocs.org/ntsb/CEN10LA455 ## Probable cause A loss of engine power due to fuel exhaustion as a result of the pilot’s improper fuel planning. ## Findings NTSB's coded findings; those marked are part of the probable cause. - [Fluids: fuel](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb-findings/01071010): Aircraft › Fluids/misc hardware · Fluid level (probable cause); cases with it: [All aircraft, 1,695 cases](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb-findings/01071010/cases.md) - [Action: incomplete action](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb-findings/02041040): Personnel issues › Action/decision · Pilot (probable cause); cases with it: [All aircraft, 105 cases](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb-findings/02041040/cases.md) ## Sequence of events The events NTSB coded, in order, by phase of flight. The defining event best describes what happened. - [Maneuvering-low-alt flying: Loss of engine power (total)](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb-events/341); cases with it: [All aircraft, 3,820 cases](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb-events/341/sequence.md) - [Emergency descent: Off-field or emergency landing](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb-events/440); cases with it: [All aircraft, 3,365 cases](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb-events/440/sequence.md) - [Landing-flare/touchdown: Tailstrike](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb-events/091) (defining event); cases with it: [All aircraft, 124 cases](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb-events/091/sequence.md) ## Analysis The pilot stated that he normally fueled the helicopter with 200 pounds of fuel each time he loaded chemicals, which equated to approximately 30 minutes of engine endurance. During the flight he did not recall the 20-minute fuel warning light or any other warning lights illuminating. After what the pilot thought was about 15 minutes into the flight, the helicopter yawed from side-to-side and the engine experienced a total loss of power. The pilot performed a quick-stop landing, severing the tail boom. Federal Aviation Administration inspectors found no fuel in the fuel line and only a half of a cup of fuel in the fuel filter. While the fuel tank had been compromised, there was no evidence of fuel in the surrounding area. ## Factual narrative On July 31, 2010, approximately 1200 central daylight time, a Garlick OH-58A, N305SD, operated by Coastal Air Service, Panama City, Florida, was substantially damaged when the pilot made a quick-stop landing after the engine lost power 10 miles east of Kountze, Texas. Visual meteorological conditions (VMC) prevailed at the time of the accident. The aerial application flight was being conducted under the provisions of 14 Code of Federal Regulations (CFR) Part 137 without a flight plan. The pilot, the sole occupant on board, received serious injuries. The local flight originated near Kountze, Texas, approximately 1130. The pilot reported the helicopter yawed from side-to-side, then the engine lost power. The pilot performed a quick-stop landing, severing the tail boom. The pilot told FAA inspectors that he normally fueled to 200 lbs each time he loaded chemicals, and this gave him approximately 30 minutes endurance. He did not recall the 20-minute fuel warning light or any other warning lights illuminating. He thought he had flown only 15 minutes. FAA inspectors found no fuel in the fuel line and only 1/2-cup of fuel in the fuel filter. The fuel tank had been compromised. An FAA inspector responded to the accident site and found the helicopter in an upright position. He could not access the fuel filler cap to see how much fuel was in the tank. There was no fuel in the line between the fuel control and the engine fuel nozzle. When the main fuel filter was opened (and after letting the fuel filter drain back into the housing), less than 1/2-cup of fuel was noted. There was no fuel smell in the area. ## Aircraft - Registration: N305SD (not matched to a registry record) - Reported make and model: GARLICK OH-58A - Category: Helicopter - Serial number: 70-15649 - Airframe hours: 6636 - Engines: Rolls Royce-Allison T-63A-720 420 horsepower turbo shaft - Damage: Substantial damage - Flight: Aerial application, Part 137 - Operator: Coastal Air Service - Registered owner: Coastal Air Service - Airworthiness certificate: Special, Restricted (Special) - Last inspection: 100 hour, July 9, 2010, 65 hours before - Departed: NONE, Kountze, TX ## Flight crew As NTSB recorded them. NTSB leaves out names. - Pilot; age 60; injuries: serious; commercial; airplane ratings: single-engine land; medical: class 2, with waivers/limitations; last flight review February 5, 2010; seat: right; flight hours: 17,483 total, 6,196 in this make and model, 17,421 as pilot in command, 108 in the last 90 days, 83 in the last 30 days, 4 in the last 24 hours ## Weather - Conditions: Visual (VMC), Day - Wind: 310° at 7 knots - Visibility: 10 statute miles - Lowest ceiling: none - Temperature: 90 °F, dew point 75 °F - Altimeter: 29.94 inHg - Observed at: BPT ## 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 20100731040539A](https://openairdocs.org/incident/20100731040539A), Jul 31, 2010: Garlick Hel OH-58A+, Kountze, TX, Destroyed. On 31 July 2010 at approximately 1200 hours, a oh -58 helicopter was operating under CFR part 137 aerial application, near Kountze Texas when it experienced a… ## Docket (4 files) The files NTSB released with the investigation on November 2, 2010, on NTSB's docket system: https://data.ntsb.gov/Docket?ProjectID=76823. 4.3 MB in all. - NTSB Form 6120.1-2, Pilot-Operator Aircraft Accident Report (item 1, .PDF, 606 KB): https://data.ntsb.gov/Docket/Document/docBLOB?ID=40338365&FileExtension=.PDF&FileName=NTSB%20Form%206120.1-2,%20Pilot-Operator%20Aircraft%20Accident%20Report-Redacted.PDF - Weather Reports and Records (item 2, .PDF, 10 KB): https://data.ntsb.gov/Docket/Document/docBLOB?ID=40334947&FileExtension=.PDF&FileName=Weather%20Reports%20and%20Records-Master.PDF - Photo 1. Wreckage of N305SD. (item 3, .PDF, 2.0 MB): https://data.ntsb.gov/Docket/Document/docBLOB?ID=40338244&FileExtension=.PDF&FileName=Photo%201.%20Wreckage%20of%20N305SD.-Master.PDF - Photo 2. Wreckage and cockpit of N305SD. (item 4, .PDF, 1.7 MB): https://data.ntsb.gov/Docket/Document/docBLOB?ID=40338245&FileExtension=.PDF&FileName=Photo%202.%20Wreckage%20and%20cockpit%20of%20N305SD.-Master.PDF 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.