Accident Overview
A pilot inadvertently left the master switch on after landing, resulting in a dead battery. To start the engine, he decided to hand-prop the airplane. He tied the tail down with a ramp tie-down rope and set the throttle forward about one-quarter of an inch. He did not set the brakes or place wheel chocks.
Sequence of Events
After starting the engine, the pilot was walking around the wing to enter the airplane when the tie-down rope broke. The airplane began moving. As the pilot attempted to grab the door handle, the horizontal stabilator struck him, knocking him to the ground. The unmanned airplane then traveled west across the ramp, where it contacted the left wing of a Diamond DA40. Continuing westbound, its left wing struck a light pole, turning the airplane 180 degrees. The airplane then traveled east, back across the ramp, where it contacted the tail of a Cessna 150E. It came to rest after contacting the nose and left wing of a Grumman AA-1B.
Post-Accident Inspection
Examination of the accident site revealed that the tail tie-down rope had broken, with one end still attached to the tie-down ring on the airplane and the other end attached to the pavement tie-down ring. The airport manager stated that the airport does not supply tie-down ropes.
Pilot Actions
The pilot reported that he did not set the airplane's brakes nor place chocks under the wheels prior to hand-propping the engine.