- Date
- July 1, 2022, 16:30 local (21:30 UTC)
- Place
- East Troy, WI
- Injuries
- 1 uninjured
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Phase of flight
- Approach
- Aircraft
- N882NYBell 206B
- Defining event
- Approach: Fuel exhaustion
- Weather
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Status
- Completed
- Report
- Approved by Office Director
- Investigation class
- Class 4 - Basic report with no Prelim publish
- NTSB office
- Central Region
- Parties
- FAA
- FAA report
- 20220701005109A
- Case key
- 105427
From the NTSB’s public API. By law, NTSB reports can’t be used as evidence in lawsuits over the accident.
On this page
Probable cause
The pilot’s improper fuel management that resulted in fuel exhaustion and a loss of engine power.
Findings · 3
NTSB’s coded findings. Those marked are part of the probable cause; the rest are factors or other findings. Under each, the cases with the same finding.
Sequence of events
The events NTSB coded, in order, by phase of flight. The defining event is the one that best describes the accident. Under each, the cases with the same event anywhere in their sequence.
Analysis
While approaching to land on a support truck, the helicopter experienced a loss of engine power. The pilot attempted to autorotate to land and the helicopter experienced a hard landing. The right skid broke, and the main rotor blades struck the ground and the tail boom. The helicopter sustained substantial damage to the fuselage and tail boom. The pilot attributed the loss of engine power due to a possible fuel pump failure. During a telephone interview the pilot said that he took off from the airport ramp to refuel and the fuel gauge indicated about 15 to 20 gallons. He climbed the helicopter to about 40 ft, flew about 150 yards, and landed on a support truck where the helicopter idled for about 15 minutes while ground personnel attempted to get the truck fuel pump to work. One of the ground personnel waved the pilot off to another support truck. The helicopter climbed to about 40 ft and moved about 35 - 50 yards to a second support truck. As the helicopter approached to land, the tachometer dropped then spiked, and then the engine lost power. The pilot nosed the helicopter over to avoid the truck and the helicopter hit the ground. When asked the pilot answered, "I guess I ran out of fuel". A postaccident examination of the helicopter revealed that the fuel tanks were dry and the fuel gauge indicated 0 gallons of fuel.
Aircraft
- Registration
- N882NY
- Reported as
- Bell 206B
- Category
- Helicopter
- Serial number
- 882
- Built
- 1972
- Airframe hours
- 23,771
- Engine
- Allison 250-C20, 420 horsepower, turbo shaft
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Personal · Part 91
- Operator
- MF Helicopters LLC
- Registered owner
- MF Helicopters LLC
- Airworthiness certificate
- Standard, Normal; Special, Restricted (Special)
- Last inspection
- Annual · May 1, 2022
- Destination
- Same as departure
- Airport
- 57C · East Troy Muni
- Equipment
- Unknown
Matched to the registry by N-number and the event date; the registry’s history has gaps, so older matches can be wrong. Compare the reported make and model.
Flight crew
As NTSB recorded them. NTSB leaves out names.
- Role
- Pilot
- Age
- 37
- Injuries
- None
- Certificates
- Commercial, Private
- Airplane ratings
- Single-engine land
- Medical
- Class 2, Without waivers/limitations
- Last flight review
- January 27, 2022
- Seat
- Right
- Restraint
- 5-point
- Flight hours
- 2,858 total
Weather
- Conditions
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Wind
- 5° at 8 knots
- Lowest ceiling
- None
- Temperature
- 64 °F, dew point 61 °F
- Altimeter
- 29.27 inHg
Docket · 3
The files NTSB released with the investigation on October 26, 2022, on NTSB’s docket system: statements, records, photos and specialists’ reports. 4.3 MB in all.
FAA reports on this event · 1
The FAA’s own accident and incident reports, matched to the aircraft by N-number and date.