Accident Overview
On December 6, 2014, at about 1200 mountain standard time, an experimental Fouga CM 170R Magister, registration N300FM, sustained substantial damage during a forced landing near Lake Havasu City, Arizona. The commercial pilot, who was also the owner, was not injured. The airplane was being operated under 14 Code of Federal Regulations Part 91 as a personal cross-country flight.
Flight Details
The flight had departed Grand Canyon, Arizona, at 1100 with Lake Havasu City as the planned destination. Visual meteorological conditions prevailed, and no flight plan had been filed. The pilot reported that he had encountered a gyro problem during the earlier flight segment to Grand Canyon Airport but otherwise had no issues with the airplane. After adding fuel at Grand Canyon, the pilot estimated about 1.5 hours of fuel remaining when both engines flamed out while descending through 5,000 feet on approach to Lake Havasu.
Forced Landing
Unable to glide to the airport, the pilot observed a short asphalt strip nearby and attempted to land there. He landed firmly with about 1,000 feet of runway remaining. The airplane could not stop on the asphalt and continued about 200 feet into rough terrain. The cockpit remained intact, but all components of the airframe sustained substantial damage.
Fuel System Examination
The airplane's flight manual described a fuel system where a submerged boost pump in the rear fuselage tank supplied fuel to both engines through a filter and a non-return valve. The main fuel filter had a bypass pin inside the bowl that moved up and down when the filter was partially blocked, forcing the bypass poppet valve to move up. After the accident, the pilot and his mechanic examined the airplane and observed the poppet valve in the full up position. The mechanic opined that this indicated a blockage in the fuel system, but due to the damage, they did not attempt to locate the blockage site.
Registration Information
The accident aircraft, N300FM, was an experimental Fouga CM 170R Magister.