Pilot Debrief

Piper PA28R near Fletcher, NC — 2020-08-27

Final reportERA20LA302
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Date
2020-08-27
Location
Fletcher, NC, USA
Airport
NC67
Aircraft
Piper PA28R
Registration
N9341N
Category
Airplane
Highest injury
None
Fatalities
0
Phase of flight
Takeoff roll

Probable cause

A partial loss of engine power for reasons that could not be determined based on available evidence.

NTSB narrative

The pilot reported that prior to the second flight of the day, there were no anomalies with the engine run up and proceeded to perform a soft field takeoff on the wet turf runway. He applied full throttle for takeoff and noted that the airplane was "slow" to accelerate, which he thought was because of the soft turf. As the airplane was in ground effect, it was not accelerating. He raised the landing gear in an attempt to increase performance, but the airplane began to settle since the engine was not making power. The airplane descended into a corn field off the departure end of the runway and impacted the ground, resulting in substantial damage to the wings and fuselage. Prior to exiting the airplane, the pilot turned the fuel selector off and all the switches off. A witness reported to the pilot that the engine was sputtering An examination of the engine revealed no mechanical malfunctions of the engine that would have precluded normal operation prior to the accident. However, there was no fuel noted in the fuel lines to the engine driven fuel pump, the gascolator, fuel flow divider, or fuel servo. Fuel was plumbed into the engine, it started immediately, and ran continuously without anomaly until the fuel selector was moved to the OFF position. The engine ran for 32 seconds prior to shutting down after the fuel selector was turned OFF. The pilot reported that he turned the fuel selector OFF after the airplane came to rest in the corn. According to the icing probability chart in the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) Special Airworthiness Information Bulletin (SAIB) CE-09-35, weather conditions at the time of the accident were conducive to serious carburetor icing at glide power. It is possible carburetor ice developed during the time the airplane spent with the engine running on the ground prior to takeoff. However, the evidence was inconclusive as to whether the engine lost power due to carburetor icing or due to the pilot incorrectly positioning the fuel selector switch prior to takeoff.

Analysis

Primary failure mode
Fuel management
First missed decision gate
Choosing a different runway or delaying takeoff due to soft turf conditions.

NTSB coding

Evidence available

  • Video
  • Photos
  • 7 docket documents
View NTSB final reportView NTSB docket

Docket documents7

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