Summary
On May 22, 1997, a Garlick UH-1H (N95NW) was involved in an incident near Lolo, MT. All 1 person aboard were uninjured. The aircraft sustained substantial damage.
The National Transportation Safety Board determined the probable cause of this incident to be: Fuel exhaustion due to the pilot's failure to refuel.
On May 22, 1997, approximately 1130 mountain daylight time, N95NW, a Bell UH-1H, sustained substantial damage when it lost power and landed hard near Lolo, Montana. The commercial pilot was not injured. The flight was conducted in visual meteorological conditions with no flight plan filed. The flight had departed the same area about 1010.
The pilot reported that the fuel gauge showed 150 pounds and he decided to remove a large stump to the slash pile prior to landing. The stump was situated approximately 40 feet from the service landing area. As he was hovering about 150 feet over the stump waiting for the stump to be hooked up, the helicopter suddenly lost power. He made a tight spiral down to the service landing area, but landed very hard.
This incident is documented in NTSB report SEA97LA119. AviatorDB cross-references NTSB investigation data with FAA registry records to provide comprehensive safety information for aircraft N95NW.
Accident Details
Probable Cause and Findings
Fuel exhaustion due to the pilot's failure to refuel.
Aircraft Information
Analysis
On May 22, 1997, approximately 1130 mountain daylight time, N95NW, a Bell UH-1H, sustained substantial damage when it lost power and landed hard near Lolo, Montana. The commercial pilot was not injured. The flight was conducted in visual meteorological conditions with no flight plan filed. The flight had departed the same area about 1010.
The pilot reported that the fuel gauge showed 150 pounds and he decided to remove a large stump to the slash pile prior to landing. The stump was situated approximately 40 feet from the service landing area. As he was hovering about 150 feet over the stump waiting for the stump to be hooked up, the helicopter suddenly lost power. He made a tight spiral down to the service landing area, but landed very hard. The operator reported no mechanical malfunctions and listed the engine failure as "fuel exhaustion". An FAA inspector who inspected the wreckage, stated that a total of about 1 and 1/2 gal of fuel was drained from the tanks.
Data Source
Data provided by the National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB). For more information on this event, visit the NTSB Records Search website. NTSB# SEA97LA119