Cessna 182Q N502SS

Summary

On 12 January 2007 at about 17:30 local time, a Cessna 182Q registered N502SS, operated by William J. Kitchen, was involved in an accident near Coral Springs, Florida, United States. One person was on board and nobody was injured. The aircraft was substantially damaged. The NTSB has published a probable cause for this accident; it is quoted in full below.

Date

12 January 2007 at 17:30

Classification

Accident

Location

Coral Springs, Florida, United States

Coordinates

26.2697, -80.2683

Aircraft

Cessna 182Q

Registration

N502SS

Category

Airplane

Engines

1

Operator

William J. Kitchen

Operating rule

Part 91: General Aviation

Purpose of flight

Personal

Phase of flight

Not recorded

Route

Windermere → Fort Lauderdale

Aircraft damage

Substantial

Weather

VMC

Light

Day

NTSB number

MIA07LA036

Nobody was injured.

The improper design change associated with a Supplemental Type Certificate (STC), which resulted in an in-flight fire.

Quoted verbatim from the NTSB record. This site does not paraphrase or interpret it.

Read the full NTSB narrative

During cruise flight, a Cessna 182Q seaplane experienced an engine compartment in-flight fire followed by a total loss of engine power. A successful forced landing to a lake was completed, and the fire was extinguished by a local fire department. Heat damage was noted to the firewall and structural members just aft of the firewall on the bottom of the fuselage. Examination of the engine compartment revealed a 10.00-inch long fire-sleeved, steel braided, flexible fuel line (the pressure return from the fuel control unit to the engine-driven fuel pump) had chafed against an electrical cable approximately 5 inches from where the fuel line attached to the engine-driven fuel pump. The chafing had created a hole in the fuel line and worn away the insulation from the wire which resulted in the in-flight fire, and ultimately the loss of engine power. The airplane was modified by a mechanic 2 years 4 months and 11 days earlier by installing a dimensionally larger engine and modifying the firewall per a Supplemental Type Certificate (STC). The engine provided to the mechanic came from the STC holder with the 10.00-inch fuel line installed, though this line was originally 8.25 inches in length when the STC was approved by the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) Aircraft Certification Office (ACO). Prior to STC approval, personnel from the ACO inspected a modified airplane and drawings submitted by the STC submitter; however the drawings only depicted modifications and not previously installed lines, hoses, etc. The mechanic who modified the airplane with the larger engine reported that postaccident, he inspected five similar airplanes and found two had chafing of the same electrical cable, but against different fuel lines. He also stated the area where the fracture fuel line was located was "tight."

Quoted verbatim from the NTSB record.