What happened
On October 8, 2017, a Cirrus SR-20, registration F-HFRB, departed Toulouse Lasbordes for a flight to Auch, France. The pilot, accompanied by one passenger, chose a route over the Pyrenees to enhance the flight experience. After landing in Auch and completing a two-and-a regular stop, the pilot departed for the return leg to Toulouse.
Shortly after takeoff, while cruising at approximately 1,500 feet, the pilot noticed engine misfires. In an attempt to restore power, the pilot manipulated the power controls, activated the fuel pump, and engaged the electric starter; however, these actions failed to resolve the issue. The pilot subsequently turned back toward Auch and attempted to locate a field for an emergency landing. The aircraft struck the ground in a hilly area, resulting in substantial damage to the aircraft, though no injuries were reported.
The investigation
The investigation focused on the fuel system management and the sequence of events leading to the engine failure. Examination of the wreckage revealed that the fuel selector was set to the left tank, which was completely empty, while the right tank still contained fuel.
The pilot, a 67-year-old with 1,865 total flight hours, noted that he had been using the left tank for approximately 1 hour and 50 minutes. He admitted that he rarely flew aircraft requiring manual fuel selector management and had not considered switching tanks regularly. Furthermore, the pilot did not utilize a checklist during pre-flight or engine start procedures, nor did he use a fuel tracking sheet, as he considered the flight to be simple and focused on the passenger's enjoyment.
Findings
The investigation established that the engine failure was caused by fuel exhaustion in the active tank, which led to the unpriming of the fuel system. The primary cause was the inadequate management of the fuel selector switch.
Several contributing factors were identified:
- Failure to use checklists during aircraft startup and pre-flight operations.
- Incomplete knowledge of normal and emergency procedures.
- Low recent experience with this specific aircraft type.
- A lack of flight monitoring due to prioritizing the passenger's sightseeing experience.