Piper PA-28-181 Archer EC-IRJ Emergency Landing in Brunete, Madrid

Incident Overview On 9 June 2005, a Piper PA-28-181 Archer with registration EC-IRJ was conducting a private local flight in the western area of Madrid, near Cuatro Vientos Airport. The aircraft was carrying the pilot and three passengers. While turning at 3,500 ft over the southern area of Valdemorillo, the engine stopped while the aircraft was over the ultralight field in Villanueva de la Cañada. The pilot attempted to restart the engine by advancing the throttle and switching the fuel selector from the left to the right tank. Due to the rapid loss of altitude, the pilot elected to make an emergency landing in a cereal field at 21:26 local time. ## Occupants and Damage All four occupants were uninjured and left the aircraft under their own power. The pilot had left the controls in accordance with the flight manual. The aircraft sustained only minor damage to the nose gear, caused by ground irregularities during the rollout. ## Crew and Aircraft Information The pilot-in-command was 26 years old and held a valid commercial pilot license for airplanes. He had a total of 188 flight hours, including 16 hours and 12 minutes on type. The aircraft was a 1981 Piper PA-28-181 Archer, serial number 28-8190218, powered by a single Lycoming O-360-A4M engine, serial number L-14499-36A. The airworthiness certificate was in the normal category, valid from 29 October 2004 to 29 October 2005. ## Fuel and Operational Details The pilot reported that the flight was planned for 30 minutes but lasted approximately 50 minutes. He stated that he took off using the left tank, switched to the right tank after 30 minutes, used the right tank for another 15 to 20 minutes, and then switched back to the left tank, where the engine stopped five minutes later. The last fueling occurred on the day of the incident, with both tanks filled. Each tank has a capacity of 25 gallons, with 24 usable gallons (90.85 liters) per tank, for a total of 181.7 liters. Four prior flights on the same day totaled 3 hours and 10 minutes. Based on an estimated consumption of 33 liters per hour, approximately 104.5 liters were consumed before the incident flight, leaving an estimated 77.2 liters at the start. After the flight, 50 liters were extracted from the right tank, and the left tank was found to be empty. This indicated that approximately 27.2 liters were consumed during the incident flight, representing about 50 minutes of flight. ## Site Inspection At the scene, 40 cc of fuel was extracted from the carburetor float bowl and 200 cc from the drain bowl in the firewall; neither showed dirt or water. The carburetor inlet filter was clean. The engine was inspected with no abnormalities found. The fuel selector was found indicating the right tank. The landing occurred over a distance of 215 meters, with the first 65 meters having a 1% downward slope that increased to 4%. The aircraft touched down 12 meters after entering the field.