# NTSB CHI03LA289: Air Tractor AT-502B, N5007G, Westside, IA, August 22, 2003 - Type: NTSB accident investigation - Classification: Accident · Minor injuries · Limited investigation · Final report - Date: August 22, 2003, 18:25 local (23:25 UTC) - Place: Westside, IA - Coordinates: 42.04861, -95.096664 - Nearby events: https://openairdocs.org/map.md?lat=42.0486&lon=-95.0967&mi=10 - Phase of flight: [Maneuvering](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb-phases/450) (OpenAirDocs' grouping) - Highest injury: Minor injuries - Injuries: 1 minor - Status: Completed, report March 2, 2004 - Report: Approved by Office Director - Parties: FAA -- Des Moines FSDO - NTSB case key (mKey): 57801 - NTSB case page: https://web.ntsb.gov/investigations/?ntsbnumber=CHI03LA289 - NTSB report (PDF, downloads): https://data.ntsb.gov/carol-repgen/api/Aviation/ReportMain/GenerateNewestReport/57801/pdf - Page: https://openairdocs.org/ntsb/CHI03LA289 ## Probable cause The pilot's inadequate preflight planning/preparation which led to fuel exhaustion and subsequent loss of engine power. Contributing factors were the unsuitable terrain encountered, and the terrace/embankment. ## Sequence of events In NTSB's coding before 2008 (https://www.ntsb.gov/GILS/Documents/codman.pdf). - Loss of engine power(total) - nonmechanical, maneuvering - aerial application - fluid,fuel - exhaustion (cause) - preflight planning/preparation - inadequate, pilot in command (cause) - Forced landing, descent - emergency - In flight collision with terrain/water, emergency descent/landing - unsuitable terrain or takeoff/landing/taxi area - encountered, pilot in command (contributing factor) - terrain condition - dirt bank/rising embankment (contributing factor) ## Analysis The aircraft was substantially damaged during a forced landing following a complete loss of engine power due to fuel exhaustion. The pilot reported completing a final agricultural application pass when the engine abruptly lost power. He noted: "There was no place to land, I hit the fuel boost pump and the [aircraft] powered up again for 1 or 2 seconds." This allowed the pilot to clear a farm house and set-up for a forced landing in an alfalfa field. The aircraft subsequently impacted an "up sloping draw ... a terrace and went into a steep gully," according to the pilot. A post-accident examination found no evidence of fuel on-board. Both fuel tanks were empty and there was no sign of fuel on the ground in the vicinity of the aircraft. The pilot reported no malfunctions with the aircraft prior to the loss of engine power. No anomalies associated with a pre-impact failure were observed during the post-accident inspection. The pilot reportedly had a standing request with the fixed base operator that the aircraft be filled to the 3/4 tabs each time it was fueled. He stated that the fuel gauges "have been very undependable this summer," so after each refueling he would enter 162 gallons into the fuel flow meter. Due to his lack of confidence in the fuel gauges, the pilot was using the fuel flow meter to monitor his in-flight fuel status. The pilot stated that he did not visually verify the fuel quantity after refueling prior to the accident flight. ## Factual narrative On August 22, 2003, at 1825 central daylight time, an Air Tractor AT-502B, N5007G, piloted by a commercial pilot, was substantially damaged during a forced landing following a loss of engine power near Westside, Iowa. The agricultural application flight was operated under 14 CFR Part 137 and was not on a flight plan. Visual meteorological conditions prevailed at the time of the accident. The pilot reported minor injuries. The local flight departed the Arthur N. Neu Airport (CIN), Carroll, Iowa, at 1620. In his written statement, the pilot reported completing a final agricultural application pass and was planning to return to the airport when the engine abruptly lost power. The pilot stated: "There was no place to land, I hit the fuel boost pump and the [aircraft] powered up again for 1 or 2 seconds." This allowed the pilot to clear a farm house and set-up for a forced landing in an alfalfa field. The pilot noted that the aircraft "was descending quite fast." It subsequently impacted an "up sloping draw ... a terrace and went into a steep gully," according to the pilot. A post-accident examination found no evidence of fuel on-board. Both fuel tanks were empty and there was no sign of fuel on the ground in the vicinity of the aircraft. The fuel lines and fittings were intact. No indication of leakage at the fuel caps or within the fuselage in the vicinity of the fuel selector was present. The pilot reported no malfunctions with the aircraft prior to the loss of engine power. No anomalies associated with a pre-impact failure were observed during the post-accident inspection. The pilot reportedly had a standing request with the fixed base operator that the aircraft be filled to the 3/4 tabs each time it was fueled. The 3/4 tabs equated to 162 gallons or about 3 hours-10 minutes endurance, according to the pilot. The pilot stated that the fuel gauges "have been very undependable this summer," so after each refueling he would enter 162 gallons into the fuel flow meter. Due to his lack of confidence in the fuel gauges, the pilot was using the fuel flow meter to monitor his in-flight fuel status. After the accident flight, the pilot noted the fuel flow meter indicated 104 gallons had been used. Review of the airport fuel records indicated the accident aircraft was refueled twice on the day of the accident. The first was with 70.5 gallons and the second with 108.0 gallons. The previous flights that day lasted 2 hours to 2-1/2 hours, according to the pilot. He noted that after the first flight he would have expected about 110 gallons would have been needed to fill the tanks to the 3/4 tabs, instead of 70.5 gallons. The pilot stated that he did not visually verify the fuel quantity after refueling prior to the accident flight. ## Aircraft - Registration: [N5007G](https://openairdocs.org/aircraft/N5007G), registered now, S/N 502B-0417, built 1997 (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-0417 - Airframe hours: 2267 - Engines: Pratt & Whitney PT6A-15 680 horsepower turbo prop - Damage: Substantial damage - Flight: Aerial application, Part 137 - Operator: Westerlin And Harrington Flying Ser - Registered owner: Westerlin Harrington Flying Service Inc. - Airworthiness certificate: Special, Restricted (Special) - Departed: CIN, Carroll, IA ## Flight crew As NTSB recorded them. NTSB leaves out names. - Pilot; age 53; injuries: minor; commercial; airplane ratings: single-engine land; instrument ratings: airplane; medical: class 2, valid medical--w/ waivers/lim; last flight review July 28, 2003; seat: single; flight hours: 10,200 total, 1,000 in this make and model, 9,700 as pilot in command, 350 in the last 90 days, 80 in the last 30 days ## Weather - Conditions: Visual (VMC), Day - Wind: 100° at 5 knots - Visibility: 10 statute miles - Lowest ceiling: none - Temperature: 79 °F, dew point 64 °F - Altimeter: 30.10 inHg - Observed at: CIN, 10 nm away ## 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 20030822021759A](https://openairdocs.org/incident/20030822021759A), Aug 22, 2003: Airtrc AT502B, Westside, IA. (-23) The pilot made an emergency landing in an alfalfa field because of fuel exhaustion, approximately 2 miles south of Westside, Iowa. The landing was made… 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.