Rockwell S-2R N4971X

Summary

On 17 April 2012 at about 23:15 local time, a Rockwell S-2R registered N4971X, operated by Meines Interprises LLC, was involved in an accident near Palouse, Washington, United States. One person was on board and nobody was injured. The aircraft was substantially damaged. The NTSB has published a probable cause for this accident; it is quoted in full below.

Date

17 April 2012 at 23:15

Classification

Accident

Location

Palouse, Washington, United States

Coordinates

46.9100, -117.0753

Aircraft

Rockwell S-2R

Registration

N4971X

Category

Airplane

Engines

1

Operator

Meines Interprises LLC

Operating rule

Part 137: Agricultural

Purpose of flight

Aerial Application

Phase of flight

Not recorded

Route

Palouse → Palouse

Aircraft damage

Substantial

Weather

VMC

Light

Day

NTSB number

WPR12CA172

Nobody was injured.

The pilot’s inadequate fuel planning, which resulted in a total loss of engine power due to fuel exhaustion. Contributing to the accident was the pilot’s distraction and subsequent failure to have the airplane refueled.

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

Read the full NTSB narrative

The pilot landed after completing an aerial application to a field, and planned to refuel the airplane while the application tank was reloaded. He said that among other distractions, he was having problems with his global positioning system, and began discussing it with another pilot. The pilot reported that after takeoff, he realized that he did not have the ground crew refuel the airplane. He said that the destination field was close, so he decided to continue rather than return and refuel the airplane. He indicated that the fuel gauges indicated 1/4 capacity at takeoff and were bouncing around 1/8 capacity after he completed two passes. The engine subsequently lost power due to fuel exhaustion, and the pilot landed in a flat field, which was wet and soft. During the landing roll, the airplane nosed over, substantially damaging the vertical stabilizer and rudder. The pilot reported no preimpact mechanical malfunctions or failures with the airplane that would have precluded normal operation.

Quoted verbatim from the NTSB record.