- Date
- May 30, 2006, 17:35 local (22:35 UTC)
- Place
- Sheridan, AR
- Injuries
- 1 serious
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Phase of flight
- Enroute
- Aircraft
- N4086CBell 47G-4A
- Weather
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Status
- Completed · report October 3, 2006
- Report
- Approved by Office Director
- Parties
- Little Rock, Arkansas
- FAA report
- 20060530009509A
- Case key
- 63779
From the NTSB’s public API. By law, NTSB reports can’t be used as evidence in lawsuits over the accident.
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Probable cause
The NTSB’s determination of the probable cause, and any contributing factors.
The pilot's inadequate fuel management, which resulted in fuel exhaustion and a subsequent loss of engine power. A contributing factor was the lack of suitable terrain for the forced landing.
Analysis
The 15,000-hour commercial pilot reported in a telephone interview that he departed a timber tract with 15 gallons of fuel on-board en route to another tract located about 13 miles away. When the turbine-powered helicopter was approximately three miles short of his destination, while at an altitude of 600 feet above ground level (AGL), the engine lost power. The pilot entered an autorotation for a forced landing to an open field. Examination of the aerial application helicopter at the accident site revealed that no fuel was found in the fuel nozzle and less than three gallons of fuel was found in the fuel tanks. The turbine engine was removed from the helicopter and shipped to the factory for a detailed examination and test run. A written statement provided by the supervising FAA inspector, who witnessed the engine examination and test run, stated that the engine started and ran for an hour and twenty minutes with no discrepancies noted.
Factual narrative
The 15,000-hour commercial pilot reported in a telephone interview that he departed a timber tract with 15 gallons of fuel on-board enroute to another tract located about 13 miles away. When the turbine -powered helicopter was approximately three miles short of his destination, while at an altitude of 600 feet above ground level (AGL), the engine lost power. The pilot entered an autorotation for a forced landing to an open field. Examination of the aerial application helicopter at the accident site revealed that no fuel was found in the fuel nozzle and less than three gallons of fuel was found in the fuel tanks. The turbine engine was removed from the helicopter and shipped to the factory for a detailed examination and test run. A written statement provided by the supervising FAA inspector, who witnessed the engine examination and test run, stated that the engine started and ran for an hour and twenty minutes with no discrepancies noted.
Sequence of events
NTSB’s coding before 2008: each occurrence and phase of flight, and the causes and factors under it. The codes are defined in NTSB’s coding manual.
Aircraft
- Registration
- N4086C
- Reported as
- Bell 47G-4A
- Category
- Helicopter
- Serial number
- 7727
- Engine
- Allison 250, 250 horsepower, turbo shaft
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Part 137
- Registered owner
- Holcomb Aerial Services Inc
- Airworthiness certificate
- Standard, Normal
- Departed
- Sheridan, AR
- Flight plan
- Unknown
- Airport
- N/A
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
- 42
- Injuries
- Serious
- Certificate
- Commercial
- Airplane ratings
- Single-engine land
- Instrument ratings
- Airplane
- Medical
- Class 2
- Last flight review
- January 1, 2005
- Seat
- Left
- Flight hours
- 15,000 total · 1,900 in this make and model · 98 in the last 90 days · 40 in the last 30 days
Weather
- Conditions
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Visibility
- 10 statute miles
- Lowest ceiling
- None
- Temperature
- 91 °F
FAA reports on this event · 1
The FAA’s own accident and incident reports, matched to the aircraft by N-number and date.