Piper PA-28-161 N4122T

Summary

On 26 May 2010 at about 15:15 local time, a Piper PA-28-161 registered N4122T, operated by Chandler Air Service Inc, was involved in an accident near Chandler, Arizona, United States. 2 people were on board and one was seriously injured, one had minor injuries. The aircraft was substantially damaged. The NTSB has published a probable cause for this accident; it is quoted in full below.

Date

26 May 2010 at 15:15

Classification

Accident

Location

Chandler, Arizona, United States

Nearest airport

Chandler Municipal Airport (CHD)

Coordinates

33.2719, -111.8047

Aircraft

Piper PA-28-161

Registration

N4122T

Category

Airplane

Engines

1

Operator

Chandler Air Service Inc

Operating rule

Part 91: General Aviation

Purpose of flight

Instructional

Phase of flight

Not recorded

Route

Chandler → Chandler

Aircraft damage

Substantial

Weather

VMC

Light

Day

NTSB number

WPR10FA264

1 person was seriously injured.

Failure of the maintenance personnel to ensure adequate torque of a fuel line fitting, 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

The certificated flight instructor (CFI) and private pilot were performing touch-and-go practice takeoff and landings. When the airplane was turning to the crosswind leg of the traffic pattern they began to see smoke in the cockpit, which was likely coming through the defroster vents. With the airplane about 1,600 feet mean sea level, the CFI assumed authority of the controls and declared an emergency to the tower air traffic controller. Within several seconds the smoke became thick in the cabin, and the CFI banked the airplane right with the intent of landing on the closet runway. The smoke in the cockpit became so thick that the CFI lost visual reference outside. He flared the airplane and it touched down hard. After the airplane came to a stop, the CFI and the private pilot exited. A review of the airplane maintenance logbooks revealed that the last annual inspection was completed 2 days prior to the accident. According to the records, the airplane had accrued approximately 4 additional flight hours since that inspection. An examination of the firewall revealed that its left side had a white coloration which turned to a black soot color on the right side, consistent with the fire originating on the left side of the engine. The fuel line leading from the engine driven fuel pump to the carburetor was found disconnected at the fuel pump. There was no visible impact damage to the “B” nut on the line or to the fitting on the fuel pump, indicating the line was not connected at the time of impact. Based on this evidence, it is likely that the “B” nut on the line was not properly tightened, which allowed it to back off due to normal engine vibration, resulting in the line disconnecting during the flight. Pressurized fuel from the fuel pump then sprayed onto the left side of the exhaust system and ignited. The engine manufacturer recommended that the fuel line “B” nut torque should be 35 in-lbs.

Quoted verbatim from the NTSB record.