- Date
- July 14, 1997, 12:20 local (18:20 UTC)
- Place
- Idaho Falls, ID
- Injuries
- 1 minor
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Phase of flight
- Approach
- Aircraft
- N8494EBell 47G-3B
- Weather
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Status
- Completed · report January 28, 2000
- Report
- Approved by Office Director
- FAA report
- 19970714018379A
- Case key
- 42657
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 mismanaged his fuel supply which led to fuel exhaustion and subsequent loss of engine power. Factors contributing to the accident were the lack of adequate altitude and airspeed to successfully execute an autorotation.
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.
Analysis
The pilot reported that upon making the last spray pass of a potato field he noted a low fuel state and turned back towards his refueling truck. At an altitude of 10-15 feet above ground and an airspeed of approximately 25 knots, the engine lost power. The pilot reported that 'when it quit I did not have the time to do any auto(rotation). It stopped and I hit the ground.' An FAA inspector confirmed the lack of fuel on board the aircraft following the accident. The height-velocity diagram for the Bell 47G-3B placed the aircraft on the boundary of the envelope for a successful autorotation at the altitude and speed at the time of the power loss.
Factual narrative
On July 14, 1997, approximately 1220 mountain daylight time, a Bell 47G-3B, N8494E, registered to Roger & Michael Hall, and being flown by a commercial pilot doing business as Eagle Aviation, Inc., incurred substantial damage during a hard landing, following a total loss of power while returning to his fueling station, approximately 11 miles east of Idaho Falls, Idaho. The pilot sustained minor injuries. No flight plan had been filed and visual meteorological conditions existed at the time. The flight, which had just completed an aerial application run, was to have been operated under 14CFR137, and originated from a location adjacent to the spray site.
The pilot reported that he "was spraying a potato field. As I made the last pass I looked down and noticed my gas gauge showing low. So I turned around and head(ed) back to the load truck."
He continued reporting "I was over a sod field when the engine quit. At that time I was about 250 to 300 yd (yards) from the truck and at (sic) about 10 to 15 f(ee)t above the ground and at (sic) about 25 kts.
He concluded reporting "When it quit I did not have the time to do any auto(rotation). It stopped and I hit the ground."
An altitude of 15 feet (above ground) at an airspeed of 25 knots places the aircraft on the boundary of the envelope for a successful autorotation (refer to CHART I).
An inspector from the Federal Aviation Administration's Flight Standards District Office, Salt Lake City, Utah, traveled to the site. His examination confirmed that the fuel tanks were empty.
Aircraft
- Registration
- N8494E
- Reported as
- Bell 47G-3B
- Category
- Helicopter
- Serial number
- 2716
- Engine
- Lycoming TVO-435-A1A, 220 horsepower, reciprocating
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Aerial application · Part 137
- Operator
- Wood, Milton, H., doing business as Eagle Aviation
- Registered owner
- Hall, Roger & Michael
- Airworthiness certificate
- Special, Restricted (Special)
- Last inspection
- 100 hour · July 17, 1997 · 7 hours before
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
- 51
- Certificate
- Commercial
- Airplane ratings
- Single-engine sea, Single-engine land, Multi-engine land
- Instrument ratings
- Airplane
- Medical
- Class 2, Valid Medical--w/ waivers/lim
- Seat
- Left
- Flight hours
- 12,950 total · 1,195 in this make and model · 365 in the last 90 days · 104 in the last 30 days · 8 in the last 24 hours
Weather
- Conditions
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Wind
- 170° at 4 knots
- Visibility
- 60 statute miles
- Lowest ceiling
- None
- Temperature
- 81 °F, dew point 52 °F
- Altimeter
- 30.00 inHg
- Observed at
- IDA
FAA reports on this event · 1
The FAA’s own accident and incident reports, matched to the aircraft by N-number and date.
Other investigations on N8494E · 2
Matched to the same aircraft by N-number and date.