Pilot Debrief

RANS S-7 near Atomic City, ID — 2009-05-01

Final reportWPR09CA225
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Date
2009-05-01
Location
Atomic City, ID, USA
Airport
U48
Aircraft
RANS S-7
Registration
N4272M
Category
Airplane
Highest injury
None
Fatalities
0

Probable cause

A loss of engine power due to fuel starvation as a result of the pilot's inadequate fuel management.

NTSB narrative

The pilot/owner and a pilot rated passenger flew to a local airport for a brief stop, and then continued to another nearby airport where the passenger performed a touch-and-go. He had begun a slight right turn during the climbout from the touch-and-go when the engine lost power about 250 feet above ground level (agl). The owner took control, turned back to the left, and tried to land on the end of the runway. He leveled off slightly about 20 feet agl, and then flared for landing. The airplane landed hard on the north side of the runway and the right wheel broke off. The landing gear dug into the turf, the airplane spun 180 degrees, and the right main landing gear collapsed. The airframe around the tailwheel and rudder sustained substantial damage. The owner indicated that the airplane had a header tank that was the only fuel supply for the engine in addition to the wing tanks that were used to supply the header tank. He used an electric fuel pump to manually transfer fuel from the wing tanks to the header tank. He stated that he usually did not let the header tank get less than half full since the fuel pick-up port for the engine driven pump is at the front of the tank. He said that he probably let the fuel level get too low on this flight. During the climbout with the nose up, he surmised that the header tank fuel pick-up unported, resulting in the loss of power.

NTSB coding

View NTSB final report

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