ASN Wikibase Occurrence # 163712
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| Date: | Tuesday 4 February 2014 |
| Time: | 11:50 |
| Type: |  Piper PA-28-181 Archer III |
| Owner/operator: | TransPac Aviation Academy |
| Registration: | N312PA |
| MSN: | 2843509 |
| Year of manufacture: | 2002 |
| Total airframe hrs: | 14186 hours |
| Engine model: | Lycoming O-360 SERIES |
| Fatalities: | Fatalities: 0 / Occupants: 3 |
| Aircraft damage: | Substantial |
| Category: | Accident |
| Location: | Near Deer Valley Airport (KDVT), Phoenix, AZ -
 United States of America
|
| Phase: | Take off |
| Nature: | Training |
| Departure airport: | Phoenix, AZ (DVT) |
| Phoenix, AZ (DVT) | |
| Investigating agency: | NTSB |
| Confidence Rating: |  Accident investigation report completed and information captured |
The student and flight instructor were conducting touch-and-go landings. The student flew an approach that required slipping the airplane and maintaining a low engine power setting. During the climb after the touch-and-go landing, the airplane’s engine lost power about 200 ft above ground level. The flight instructor stated that the engine’s rpm was decreasing and he decided to turn toward the airport area. Subsequently, the flight instructor initiated a forced landing to a field near the airport. During the landing sequence, the airplane struck and breached the airport’s perimeter fence and then nosed over; a postaccident fire ensued. The postaccident examination of the airframe and engine revealed no evidence of mechanical malfunctions or failures that would have precluded normal operation.
During the examination of the airplane wreckage, the fuel selector was found in an intermediate position. Ground testing of a similar model airplane revealed that the engine could run several minutes with the fuel selector positioned in this intermediate position. The student and the instructor stated that the student switched the fuel selector about 9 miles from the airport per operator requirements to switch fuel tanks every 30 minutes. Because of the location of the fuel selector, the flight instructor could not visually confirm its position. It is likely that the student inadvertently positioned the airplane’s fuel selector in an intermediate setting, which restricted the engine’s fuel supply. Further, the engine’s low power setting during the approach allowed the engine to run for several minutes on the fuel remaining in the return line and operate until shortly after the completion of the touch-and-go landing. Subsequently, during the climb, when the engine power was advanced, it is likely that the remaining fuel in the return line was exhausted and led to the engine power loss.
Probable Cause: The student pilot’s inadvertent positioning of the fuel selector in an intermediate position, which resulted in a loss of engine power due to fuel starvation.
Accident investigation:
 |
|
Sources:
NTSB
Location
Media:
NEWS ALERT: Plane crash near Deer Valley airport in North Phoenix. This shot from Skyfox. pic.twitter.com/IWZzh9z0fr
— Tim Macuga Fox10 Phx (@fox10tim) February 4, 2014Revision history:
| Date/time | Contributor | Updates |
|---|---|---|
| 04-Feb-2014 19:47 | gerard57 | Added |
| 04-Feb-2014 19:48 | harro | Updated [Aircraft type, Embed code] |
| 04-Feb-2014 19:51 | harro | Updated [Operator, Embed code] |
| 04-Feb-2014 20:08 | Geno | Updated [Location, Phase, Source] |
| 05-Feb-2014 04:56 | Geno | Updated [Operator, Phase, Nature, Departure airport, Destination airport, Narrative] |
| 05-Feb-2014 17:19 | Geno | Updated [Time, Aircraft type, Registration, Cn, Source] |
| 24-Feb-2014 17:43 | Geno | Updated [Source] |
| 21-Dec-2016 19:28 | ASN Update Bot | Updated [Time, Damage, Category, Investigating agency] |
| 29-Nov-2017 13:33 | ASN Update Bot | Updated [Other fatalities, Departure airport, Destination airport, Source, Embed code, Narrative] |
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