The pilot performed a preflight inspection of the Alaskan Air Adventures SQ2 with no anomalies noted.
After takeoff from the airport in Talkeetna, Alaska, when the plane was about 50 feet above ground level, the engine lost total power.
The pilot elected to land the airplane straight ahead on the runway, but there was not enough runway remaining to stop the airplane, so he maneuvered it into vegetation on the side of the runway to avoid a runway overrun.
After the airplane came to rest, the pilot noticed that the fuel selector was in between the right and left fuel tank positions, which likely got “bumped prior to takeoff.”
The airplane sustained substantial damage to the left wings and right elevator.
Probable Cause: The pilot’s inadvertent movement of the fuel selector valve to a position between the tanks, which resulted in fuel starvation and a subsequent loss of engine power.
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This August 2021 accident report is provided by the National Transportation Safety Board. Published as an educational tool, it is intended to help pilots learn from the misfortunes of others.
Sorry about the plane but really happy that the pilot is ok.
I have a Pa 28-140 Cherokee. Fuel valve on the left side wall. There is no way to bump it and have it move out of position! It’s tight and force has to be applied to move it from left, off, an right tank. I always make sure it has at least tab fuel or full tanks depending upon the situation.
I also have a A&P license and do the maintenance myself with an AI who allow it when needed. Have a safe flight …
Assuming that the fuel selector is similar to others I’ve used on Piper aircraft on the wall and not the floor, they have detents that they lock into. It would be quite difficult to just bump one out of that detent. And this is the question that I have relative to this crash: how was the fuel selector mounted (floor or wall), did it have “positive” detents, and were they worn such that this should have been found during an annual inspection (as mine was).
If what I suspect is the case, the probable cause should be listed as a mechanical failure of the fuel selector.
Wilber, that still makes it pilot error, because the pilot should have identified the problem during his preflight inspection.
Exactly.