What happened
The pilot reported that he was hand-propping the engine when the initial start attempt failed. He proceeded to prime the engine a second time before attempting to restart it. Upon the successful ignition on the second try, the aircraft unexpectedly moved forward under its own power. The plane accelerated away from the pilot's control, taxiing approximately 75 feet before colliding with nearby trees.
The investigation
During the post-incident review, the pilot acknowledged a critical oversight regarding ground safety procedures. He believed he had placed a wheel chock on one of the tires to prevent movement. However, upon inspection after the incident, he discovered that both chocks were still on his workbench and had not been deployed.
Findings
The primary factor leading to the accident was the failure to secure the aircraft with wheel chocks during the engine start procedure. This omission allowed the aircraft to roll freely once the engine engaged, resulting in the collision with the trees.