FTW99LA218

The agricultural airplane nosed over during a forced landing to a cotton field following a total loss of engine power due to fuel exhaustion. The airplane was 1 to 2 feet above cotton bushes when the engine lost power. The pilot stated that there was no 'sputtering, backfiring, or warning of the impending loss of engine power.' During the forced landing, the airplane contacted cotton bushes and nosed over. The operator reported that there was no fuel present when he attempted to sump the fuel tanks. The engine was test run by the operator and no anomalies were found.

On August 12, 1999, at 0850 central daylight time, a Grumman-Schweizer G-164B agricultural airplane, N8253K, was substantially damaged when it impacted terrain following a loss of engine power near Ferriday, Louisiana. The commercial pilot, sole occupant of the airplane, was not injured. The airplane was registered to a private individual and operated by Blackwell Air Service of Ferriday, Louisiana. Visual meteorological conditions prevailed for the 14 Code of Federal Regulations Part 137 aerial application flight and a flight plan was not filed. The local flight originated from the operator's private grass strip at 0800.

According to the 13,000-hour pilot, he was applying "malathion," a chemical utilized for the eradication of boll weevils, to a cotton field. The airplane was 1 to 2 feet above cotton bushes when the engine lost total power. The pilot stated that there was no "sputtering, backfiring, or warning of the impending loss of engine power." The pilot executed a forced landing in the cotton field. During the landing roll, the airplane contacted "larger" cotton bushes, nosed over, and came to rest inverted. The vertical stabilizer and rudder were structurally damaged and the cabane struts collapsed.

The operator reported that no fuel was present when he attempted to sump the fuel tanks. The engine was test run by the operator and no anomalies were found. The operator reported that the "engine appears to have run out of fuel."