ASN Wikibase Occurrence # 273251
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| Date: | Friday 9 November 2018 |
| Time: | |
| Type: | Partenavia P.68TC Observer |
| Owner/operator: | AOC Holding Pty (Ltd) |
| Registration: | ZS-PBR |
| MSN: | 359-40-TC |
| Fatalities: | Fatalities: 0 / Occupants: 1 |
| Aircraft damage: | Substantial |
| Category: | Accident |
| Location: | Hartebeesfontein Road, Stilfontein -
 South Africa
|
| Phase: | En route |
| Nature: | Test |
| Departure airport: | Lanseria Aerodrome (FALA) Gauteng Province |
| Lanseria Aerodrome (FALA) Gauteng Province | |
| Investigating agency: | CAA S.A. |
| Confidence Rating: |  Accident investigation report completed and information captured |
On 9 November 2018 at 1320Z, a pilot took off from Lanseria International Airport (FALA) following a mandatory periodical inspection (MPI), the flight was conducted as a maintenance check flight with the intention to land back at FALA. The pilot completed the post MPI checks and initiated the testing of the onboard camera system. After completing the testing of the camera system, he routed back to FALA. Prior to the light, the pilot stated that he uplifted 218 litres (l) of fuel, which resulted in the aircraft having a total of 520l of fuel on-board, a full capacity for this type of aircraft. The flight was conducted under visual flight rules (VFR) by day. Fine weather conditions prevailed at the time leading up to the accident.
During the entire flight, the pilot noticed that the right-hand fuel gauge was dropping, while the left-hand side was indicating full. The pilot stated that he had to compensate for the imbalance during the flight by crossfeeding from the left tank to both the left and right engines. This intervention did not correct the imbalance etween the left and the right tank indication, therefore, he elected to switch both fuel selectors back to feed oth engines from their respective tanks. The pilot further stated while crossing the ridge line of the agaliesberg mountain, the right engine surged and, shortly thereafter, it stopped. The left engine also stopped shortly after the right engine. He identified a road to execute an emergency landing. During landing, the aircraft clipped small trees alongside the road before impacting with bigger trees and a brick wall with its left wing. The aircraft then came to rest facing in north-west direction. The aircraft was substantially damaged and there were no injuries reported by the pilot. Evidence found on the left propeller blades showed that the left engine was operating under partial power at impact.
The investigation revealed that the aircraft was flown with the cross-feed selected to supply fuel from the right tank for both engines. As a result, the fuel depleted quickly from the right engine and it stopped. When the right engine stopped, the pilot switched the fuel selectors to supply from the left tank and, in the process, omitted to switch on the left auxiliary fuel pump. Because only the right fuel pump was switched on, this caused a vacuum in the left engine fuel supply line, limiting fuel supply to the engine which was configured to operate at cruise power. This resulted in the left engine losing power, making it impossible to sustain a safe flight. The pilot then elected to perform a forced landing.
Accident investigation:
 |
|
Sources:
S.A. CAA
Revision history:
| Date/time | Contributor | Updates |
|---|---|---|
| 08-Mar-2022 15:21 | harro | Updated [Operator, Total occupants, Phase, Nature, Damage, Narrative] |
| 09-Nov-2023 20:57 | Aerossurance | Updated [Location] |
Corrections or additions? ... Edit this accident description
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