What happened
On 7 July 2018, a Socata MS 880 B Rallye Club, registration F-GBCR, was performing a local flight from Besançon-La Vèze aerodrome in France. The flight, operated by Domergue Aviation, included the pilot and one passenger. During the initial climb phase, the engine began to misfire. Despite the pilot's attempts to adjust engine controls, the engine power failed.
The pilot notified air traffic services of the engine problem and attempted to maneuver the aircraft. During the descent, the aircraft struck several street lamps and brushed the roof of a hangar, which damaged the landing gear. The aircraft then struck the ground in a yard approximately 500 meters from the runway end, eventually coming to a halt after hitting a metal post. The impact damaged a vehicle's windscreen. The pilot sustained minor injuries, and the aircraft was destroyed.
The investigation
Investigators examined the wreckage and found the aircraft remained largely intact, though the landing gear was damaged. An inspection of the fuel system revealed that the left tank was empty, while the right tank contained fuel. The investigation focused on the fuel management process, noting that the aircraft was not equipped with a low-fuel warning system and required manual selection between tanks via a cockpit valve.
Records showed the aircraft had undergone maintenance the previous day and had completed two flights earlier on the day of the accident: a ferry flight and a training flight. The instructor for the training flight had used the left tank and left the selector in that position. Crucially, the aircraft logbook did not systematically record refueling quantities, making it impossible to determine the exact amount of fuel on board prior to takeoff.
Findings
- The engine power loss was caused by fuel exhaustion.
- The pilot had selected a tank that contained almost no usable fuel for the flight.
- The pilot overestimated the remaining fuel in the left tank during the pre-flight inspection.
- The pilot did not verify the fuel levels using the electric gauges due to a lack of confidence in their accuracy.
- The lack of detailed refueling entries in the logbook prevented an accurate assessment of available fuel.
- The instructor's decision to leave the fuel selector on the left tank after a previous flight contributed to the risk of error.