Summary
On February 4, 2014, at about 1150 mountain standard time, a Piper PA-28-181, registration N312PA, operated by TransPac Aviation Academy, experienced a loss of engine power during climb after a touch-and-go landing at Phoenix Deer Valley Airport (DVT), Phoenix, Arizona. The aircraft made a forced landing, struck the airport perimeter fence, nosed over, and was consumed by a post-impact fire. The student pilot and certified flight instructor (CFI) sustained serious injuries, and a passenger, also a CFI, received minor injuries. Visual meteorological conditions prevailed, and no flight plan was filed for the local instructional flight, which had departed DVT at about 1105.
Accident Details
The CFI reported that the engine lost power at about 200 feet above ground level during the climb out from runway 07L following a touch-and-go landing. The engine's revolutions per minute (rpm) were decreasing, and although it briefly surged, the power was not sustained. The CFI initiated a forced landing to a nearby field, during which the airplane struck and breached the airport perimeter fence, then nosed over, leading to a fire. Both the CFI and student pilot stated that the fuel selector had been switched approximately 9 miles from the airport per company fuel procedures, which required switching tanks every 30 minutes. The student pilot did not recall the selected tank, and the CFI could not visually confirm the fuel selector position. The student pilot did not remember touching the fuel selector after the switch. This was the first approach flown since returning from practice area work; a simulated high-energy approach was flown, involving slipping and low power settings. When the power loss occurred, the CFI did not have time to perform emergency checklist items, including changing the fuel selector position.
Personnel Information
The CFI, aged 27, held a commercial pilot certificate with single-engine, multi-engine, instrument, and instructor ratings. He was issued a first-class medical certificate on September 28, 2010, with no limitations. He reported 3,019 total flight hours, 68 hours in the preceding 90 days, 28 hours in the preceding 30 days, and no hours in the previous 24 hours; 2,418 hours were in the accident aircraft type. The student pilot, aged 21, held a third-class medical certificate issued on October 2, 2013, with no limitations. He reported 61 total flight hours, 50 hours in the preceding 90 days, and 30 hours in the preceding 30 days, all in the accident type.
Aircraft Information
The four-seat, low-wing, fixed-gear airplane, serial number 2843509, was manufactured in 2002. It was powered by a Lycoming O-360-A4M engine, serial number L-22500-36A, rated at 180 horsepower, and equipped with a Sensenich fixed-pitch propeller. An approved inspection was completed on January 21, 2014, at an airframe total time of 14,186 hours. The airplane was refueled the night before to company standard tabs of about 17 gallons per wing tank; the accident flight was the first flight of the day.
Meteorological Information
At 1153, the automated weather observation station at DVT reported wind from 200 degrees at 8 knots, visibility 10 statute miles, clear skies, temperature 12°C, dew point -1°C, and an altimeter setting of 30.05 inches of mercury.
Airport Information
Phoenix Deer Valley Airport is a towered airport with an elevation of 1,478 feet. It has parallel asphalt runways: 07R/25L (8,196 feet by 100 feet) and 07L/25R (4,500 feet by 75 feet), with the latter designated as the training runway.
Wreckage and Impact
The airplane impacted the perimeter fence about half a mile southeast of runway 07L. All major structural components were present, with tire marks extending approximately 300 feet to the fence. The airplane came to rest upright on its right side, heading about 130° magnetic, 42 feet from the fence. The fuselage and both wings were thermally damaged, with the wings separated from the fuselage. The empennage sustained thermal damage, and the upper tail section separated but remained mostly intact. The rudder remained attached, but the bottom half was consumed by fire; elevators were intact. The instrument panel and cabin area were consumed by the post-impact fire. No mechanical malfunctions or failures that would have precluded normal operation were found during the airframe examination.
Tests and Research
Examination revealed the left wing separated with about 4 feet of the tip detached; the right wing also separated, with some fuel remaining in its tank. The right horizontal stabilizer tip was bent upward. The stabilizer trim corresponded to a nose-down setting. Flight control continuity was established. The fuel selector valve was located in the cabin, sustained thermal damage, and separated from its supporting structure. The valve was observed about 20 degrees to the right of the left tank detent (12 o'clock position), an intermediate position between left and right. According to the manufacturer, an undetermined amount of fuel would flow from the tanks in this position.
Engine examination showed rotational continuity, compression on all cylinders, and normal borescope findings. The left magneto had been replaced with an Electroair electronic ignition system per a Supplemental Type Certificate, but thermal damage prevented functional testing. The right magneto produced spark, and spark plugs showed normal wear. The carburetor did not discharge fuel during throttle actuation; the needle valve and float were intact, the fuel inlet screen was clean, and no fuel was present in the carburetor bowl or accelerator pump chamber. The engine-driven fuel pump showed no internal malfunction, and the electric fuel pump was functional when powered externally. The propeller and spinner were attached, with chord-wise abrasions on the spinner. No mechanical anomalies were found in the engine.
Additional Information
A Federal Aviation Administration inspector conducted a ground test on a similar Piper PA-28-181 to evaluate fuel flow with the fuel selector in an intermediate position. With the electric fuel pump on, the engine ran for 8 to 9 minutes at 2,200 rpm before beginning to sputter (dropping 150-200 rpm and recovering), with fuel pressure indicating zero. With the electric fuel pump off, the engine stopped running in that selector position.