ASN Wikibase Occurrence # 385598
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| Date: | Wednesday 18 July 2001 |
| Time: | 08:43 LT |
| Type: |  Piper PA-34-200 |
| Owner/operator: | Garrison Aviation Inc. |
| Registration: | N15120 |
| MSN: | 34-7350022 |
| Year of manufacture: | 1972 |
| Total airframe hrs: | 5832 hours |
| Engine model: | Lycoming IO/LIO-360-C1 |
| Fatalities: | Fatalities: 0 / Occupants: 2 |
| Aircraft damage: | Substantial |
| Category: | Accident |
| Location: | Chandler, AZ -
 United States of America
|
| Phase: | Approach |
| Nature: | Test |
| Departure airport: | Chandler Municipal Airport, AZ (CHD/KCHD) |
| Investigating agency: | NTSB |
| Confidence Rating: |  Accident investigation report completed and information captured |
A fire erupted in the right engine nacelle during a maintenance check flight following replacement of the engine. The pilot shutoff the engine and feathered the propeller; however, before he could complete the emergency checklist, black smoke began entering the cockpit via a fresh air vent in the leading edge of the wing near the nacelle. The visibility in the cockpit dropped to about 1 foot and the pilot couldn't see outside, or the instrument panel, or any controls. He declared an emergency and opened the pilot's window. He instructed his passenger to crack open the main door; however, his passenger couldn't find the door handles in the dense smoke. After a period of time he got the door cracked open and the smoke cleared. At that point they were down to 300 or 400 feet agl, and he identified an open field in which an emergency landing was made. Examination of the right-hand engine revealed it was mechanically intact; however, a hose-end "B-nut" at the inlet to the engine driven fuel pump exhibited an unusual number of exposed threads. The B-nut was loose and required 1 1/8 turns to finger-tighten and 1 1/4 turns to snug tighten with a wrench. When the B-nut was unscrewed from the fitting, the threads of the fitting and the B-nut itself did not exhibit any cracks or stripped threads. No other mechanical anomalies were found.
Probable Cause: The failure of maintenance personnel to properly tighten a fuel line fitting during an engine installation resulting in a fuel leak and fire during the maintenance checkflight. A factor in the accident was inadequate inspection of the installation prior to return to service.
Accident investigation:
 |
|
Sources:
NTSB LAX01LA250
Location
Revision history:
| Date/time | Contributor | Updates |
|---|---|---|
| 05-Apr-2024 05:52 | ASN Update Bot | Added |
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