What happened
On March 8, 2011, a Robin HR 100/210 D departed from Bremgarten airfield with two occupants on board, bound for Pirmasens. The pilot had previously flown the aircraft to Bremgarten earlier that day to undergo an annual inspection at a local maintenance facility.
During the flight, the pilot contacted Pirmasens tower to report an approach for runway 23. While on final approach, the pilot notified air traffic control of engine issues, which quickly escalated to a total engine failure. Unable to maintain the runway, the aircraft landed on a sloping meadow approximately 100 meters east of the airfield boundary. During the landing sequence, the aircraft struck fence posts and a tree. The impact caused heavy damage to the airframe and landing gear, and two persons were seriously injured.
The investigation
The BFU examined the aircraft and the site of the accident. Investigators found that the right wing was destroyed and the fuselage sustained heavy damage. While the left wing tank remained intact and contained approximately 50 liters of fuel, the right outer tank was destroyed and empty, and the right inner tank was nearly depleted. The fuel selector switch had been disconnected from the flow container upon impact. The investigation also noted that the fuel selector valve to the left tank was in the closed position. No mechanical defects were identified in the aircraft's technical systems during the examination.