10 Mar 20156:23 reconstruction4K views

A Long Flight, Bad Weather and a Piper Comanche Running Out of Fuel

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On March 10, 2015, a Piper Comanche arrived over central Ohio after a long flight from Guatemala and encountered weather that made the planned instrument approach difficult. The pilot also struggled with the controller’s instructions before the emergency became a fuel problem.

“Sir, I just run out of gas. I think I ran out of gas.”

Timeline
1
March 10, 2015 — N914DP arrived in the Columbus area after a long flight from Guatemala.
2
During the Columbus approach — The pilot struggled with the ILS and turned toward final without an instruction.
3
After the first difficult approach — Kilgus directed the pilot toward Rickenbacker International Airport, where weather was better.
4
After the first Rickenbacker approach — The pilot reported that he had run out of fuel.
5
Shortly afterward — The pilot reported transferring fuel from another tank.
6
Later — N914DP completed the approach and landed safely at Rickenbacker.

The Approach at Columbus

NATCA’s account identifies the aircraft as N914DP and the controller as David Kilgus. The pilot had been in the air all day after starting the journey in Guatemala. At Columbus, the weather was IFR, with a 200-foot ceiling and half a mile of visibility.

Kilgus began vectoring the pilot toward ILS Runway 10R. English was not the pilot’s first language, and NATCA says the combination of the language barrier, difficult weather and the length of the flight made the instructions harder to follow.

The pilot suddenly turned toward final without an instruction and toward inbound traffic. Kilgus immediately directed the aircraft away from that traffic and resumed vectors for another attempt. The pilot continued to struggle with the localizer, glide slope, altitude and heading.

Rickenbacker and the Fuel Problem

When it became clear that the pilot was having difficulty completing the Columbus ILS, Kilgus suggested Rickenbacker International Airport, where conditions were better. The pilot accepted and was guided toward the alternate airport while Kilgus continued working other traffic at Columbus.

The first approach into Rickenbacker failed. The pilot then reported that he had run out of fuel. Kilgus gave him the airport’s relative position and heading information, and the pilot subsequently reported that he had transferred fuel from another tank.

Kilgus continued handling the Comanche rather than forcing an unnecessary frequency change while also managing final traffic at Columbus. The pilot eventually completed another approach and landed safely at Rickenbacker. NATCA reports that he later called Columbus to thank Kilgus.

The NATCA account makes the workload particularly clear. Kilgus was still working final-approach traffic for Columbus while assisting N914DP, and he deliberately avoided adding an unnecessary frequency change to a pilot who was already struggling. The pilot was repeatedly receiving low-altitude warnings while trying to establish the approach at Rickenbacker.

The fuel report came after the first Rickenbacker approach had failed, turning a difficult instrument-approach problem into an immediate endurance concern. The pilot’s report that fuel could be transferred from the other tank changed the immediate situation enough for Kilgus to continue vectoring him toward the airport. The later safe landing is the final confirmed outcome in the NATCA account, which also records that the pilot called Columbus afterward to thank the controller.

Accident Facts

Incident date
10 Mar 2015
Aircraft
Piper
Category
Emergency, Fuel
Reconstruction
6:23

Sources

Audio from the original air traffic control recording, sourced from public recordings and released investigation records. The reconstruction, animation and written account are our own.
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