Air Tractor AT-502B N5007G

Summary

On 22 August 2003 at about 23:25 local time, a Air Tractor AT-502B registered N5007G, operated by Westerlin and Harrington Flying SER, was involved in an accident near Westside, Iowa, United States. One person was on board and one had minor injuries. The aircraft was substantially damaged. The NTSB has published a probable cause for this accident; it is quoted in full below.

Date

22 August 2003 at 23:25

Classification

Accident

Location

Westside, Iowa, United States

Coordinates

42.0486, -95.0967

Aircraft

Air Tractor AT-502B

Registration

N5007G

Category

Airplane

Engines

1

Operator

Westerlin and Harrington Flying SER

Operating rule

Part 137: Agricultural

Purpose of flight

Aerial Application

Phase of flight

Not recorded

Route

Carroll → Unknown

Aircraft damage

Substantial

Weather

VMC

Light

Day

NTSB number

CHI03LA289

1 person had minor injuries.

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.

Quoted verbatim from the NTSB record. This site does not paraphrase or interpret it.

Read the full NTSB narrative

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.

Quoted verbatim from the NTSB record.