Ice cool ATC helps the aircraft land safely as disoriented pilot runs out of gas

A Piper Comanche arriving in central Ohio encountered poor weather, communication difficulties and a rapidly shrinking margin for error. The pilot eventually reported that the aircraft had run out of fuel while still trying to reach the alternate airport.

The First Approach

The aircraft had been flying toward Columbus, where the weather was poor: about a 200-foot ceiling and half a mile of visibility. Controller David Kilgus was vectoring the pilot toward Runway 10R.

The pilot struggled with the instructions and turned toward final without being instructed to do so, putting the aircraft toward inbound traffic. Kilgus immediately issued a turn to remove the conflict and then resumed working the aircraft toward the approach.

A Better Airport

After another approach became impractical, Kilgus recommended Rickenbacker International Airport, about ten miles away, where the weather was better.

The pilot continued to struggle with altitude and heading and triggered low-altitude warnings. Kilgus kept the aircraft on the frequency rather than forcing a frequency change while also continuing to handle other traffic.

Fuel Becomes the Emergency

The pilot failed the first approach into Rickenbacker and then reported that he had run out of fuel. Kilgus confirmed the distance to the airport.

The pilot then reported that he had transferred fuel from another tank. Kilgus continued to guide him toward the approach. The second attempt succeeded and the aircraft landed safely.

Kilgus immediately intervened and removed the aircraft from the conflict. He then tried to continue the approach, but the pilot was not able to maintain the required altitude and heading reliably.

The second approach succeeded. The pilot later contacted Columbus International to thank Kilgus, closing an emergency that had combined weather, workload, navigation difficulty and a serious fuel concern.

The fuel problem became especially dangerous because the pilot was already struggling with the approach. A report of empty fuel tanks during a failed approach leaves little room for another attempt, which made the controller's knowledge of the nearby airport and the aircraft's position critical.

The pilot's ability to transfer fuel from the other tank created enough margin for the second approach. The landing ended an emergency that had begun with weather and navigation difficulty and progressed to a fuel concern.

The pilot asked Kilgus to keep an eye on him.

The emergency ended only after the pilot was able to use fuel from the other tank and complete the second approach. The controller maintained support through the sequence rather than handing the aircraft off unnecessarily while the pilot was already struggling.

“However, the weather at Columbus International, located six miles east of downtown Columbus was bad, with a 200-foot cloud ceiling and only half a mile (800m) of visibility.”

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