# NTSB LAX00LA116: Bell 47G-4A, N1354X, Wasco, CA, March 7, 2000 - Type: NTSB accident investigation - Classification: Accident · No injuries · Limited investigation · Final report - Date: March 7, 2000, 10:20 local (18:20 UTC) - Place: Wasco, CA - Coordinates: 35.616664, -119.349998 - Nearby events: https://openairdocs.org/map.md?lat=35.6167&lon=-119.3500&mi=10 - Phase of flight: [Enroute](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb-phases/400) (OpenAirDocs' grouping) - Highest injury: No injuries - Injuries: 1 uninjured - Status: Completed, report April 18, 2003 - Report: Approved by Office Director - Parties: Federal Aviation Administration - NTSB case key (mKey): 48728 - NTSB case page: https://web.ntsb.gov/investigations/?ntsbnumber=LAX00LA116 - NTSB report (PDF, downloads): https://data.ntsb.gov/carol-repgen/api/Aviation/ReportMain/GenerateNewestReport/48728/pdf - NTSB docket: https://data.ntsb.gov/Docket?ProjectID=48728 - Page: https://openairdocs.org/ntsb/LAX00LA116 ## Probable cause The pilot's failure to use carburetor heat, which resulted in a loss of engine power. Factors included the ambient carburetor icing conditions and the lack of suitable terrain for the forced landing. ## Sequence of events In NTSB's coding before 2008 (https://www.ntsb.gov/GILS/Documents/codman.pdf). - Loss of engine power(partial) - nonmechanical, climb - carburetor heat - delayed, pilot in command (cause) - weather condition - carburetor icing conditions (cause) - Forced landing, emergency descent/landing - In flight collision with terrain/water, emergency landing - terrain condition - none suitable (contributing factor) - terrain condition - muddy - terrain condition - plowed/furrowed ## Analysis The pilot landed the single-engine helicopter in a muddy field after experiencing a loss of engine power while climbing through 200 feet. The pilot reported hearing and feeling a bang, then a jolt to the left, followed by a loss of engine power. The pilot landed the helicopter in a field with furrows, which forced the tail up resulting in a tail strike. After the accident, the pilot reported to the operator that he may have experienced carburetor icing. An overhaul of the engine did not reveal any anomalies that would have prevented the engine's operation. According to the FAA's Carburetor Icing Probability Chart with the reported temperature and dew point, the conditions existed for "Serious Icing at Cruise Power." ## Factual narrative On March 7, 2000, at 1020 Pacific standard time a Bell 47G-4A single-engine helicopter, N1354X, was substantially damaged during a forced landing following a loss of engine power after takeoff from a field near Wasco, California. The commercial pilot, who was the sole occupant, was not injured. The aircraft was registered to and operated by Inland Crop Dusters, Inc., of Bakersfield, California, as an agricultural application flight under 14 CFR Part 137. The flight had originated from a service truck shortly before the accident. Visual meteorological conditions prevailed at the time of the accident and a flight plan was not filed. According to a written statement provided by the pilot, he departed for a spray run after filling the hopper. When the helicopter reached 200 feet, the pilot "heard and felt a bang, then a jolt (to the left)," then the engine lost power. The pilot stated that he landed "softly straight ahead in a muddy field." He added that "the furrows in the field forced the nose down and the tail section up upon touchdown, causing a tail strike." The pilot told the operator that he may have experienced carburetor icing. The engine was overhauled after the accident, and no anomalies were noted during the overhaul that would have prevented its operation. At 0956, the weather observation facility at the Meadow Field Airport, Bakersfield, (located 25 miles southeast of the accident site), reported the wind from 130 degrees at 5 knots; 10 statute miles visibility; clear skies; temperature 52 degrees Fahrenheit; dew point 43 degrees Fahrenheit; and an altimeter setting of 30.01 inches of mercury. According to the Federal Aviation Administration's Carburetor Icing Probability Chart, dated June 1982, with a temperature and dew point of 52 and 43 degrees, respectively, the conditions existed for "Serious Icing at Cruise Power." ## Aircraft - Registration: [N1354X](https://openairdocs.org/deregistered/N1354X-2021-02-23), registration cancelled 2021-02-23, S/N 7537, built 1966 (OpenAirDocs) - Reported make and model: Bell 47G-4A - Registry model: [Bell 47G-4A](https://openairdocs.org/model/bell-47g-4a) (registry code 1181031) (OpenAirDocs) - Registry engine: [Lycoming VO-540 series](https://openairdocs.org/engine/lycoming-vo-540-series) (registry code 41534, reciprocating) (OpenAirDocs) - Category: Helicopter - Serial number: 7537 - Airframe hours: 11524 - Engines: Lycoming VO-540-B1B3 260 horsepower reciprocating - Damage: Substantial damage - Flight: Aerial application, Part 137 - Operator: Inland Crop Dusters, Inc. - Registered owner: Inland Crop Dusters, Inc. - Airworthiness certificate: Special, Restricted (Special) - Last inspection: 100 hour, February 29, 2000, 23 hours before - Departed: MIT, Shafter, CA - Destination: WASCO, CA ## Flight crew As NTSB recorded them. NTSB leaves out names. - Pilot; age 31; injuries: none; commercial, flight instructor; airplane ratings: single-engine land, multi-engine land; instrument ratings: airplane; medical: class 2, valid medical--w/ waivers/lim; last flight review April 28, 1999; seat: left; flight hours: 8,900 total, 7,200 in this make and model, 8,675 as pilot in command, 150 in the last 90 days, 100 in the last 30 days, 6 in the last 24 hours ## Weather - Conditions: Visual (VMC), Day - Wind: 130° at 5 knots - Visibility: 10 statute miles - Lowest ceiling: none - Temperature: 52 °F, dew point 43 °F - Altimeter: 30.01 inHg - Observed at: BFL, 25 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 20000307005009A](https://openairdocs.org/incident/20000307005009A), Mar 7, 2000: Bell 47G4, Wasco, CA, No damage. (-23) On March 7, 2000, at approximately 1025 am PST, Bell 47G4, N1354X, piloted by a commerical helicopter pilot on a part 137 aerial application, after… ## Docket (2 files) The files NTSB released with the investigation on January 21, 2003, on NTSB's docket system: https://data.ntsb.gov/Docket?ProjectID=48728. 384 KB in all. - Pilot/Operator Aircraft Accident Report, NTSB Form 6120.1 (item 1, .PDF, 366 KB): https://data.ntsb.gov/Docket/Document/docBLOB?ID=40471514&FileExtension=.PDF&FileName=Pilot%2FOperator%20Aircraft%20Accident%20Report,%20NTSB%20Form%206120.1-Master.PDF - Carburetor Icing Probability Chart (item 2, .PDF, 18 KB): https://data.ntsb.gov/Docket/Document/docBLOB?ID=40174635&FileExtension=.PDF&FileName=Carburetor%20Icing%20Probability%20Chart-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.