A CESSNA 402C ACFT EXPERIENCED ENGINE FAILURE WHEN RIGHT FUEL SELECTOR WAS SELECTED TO CROSSFEED FROM LEFT FUEL TANK WITH VALVE OPENED INDEX REVERSED.

Date: 2007-02 · Aircraft: Cessna 402/402C/B379 Businessliner/Utiliner · Phase: ground

Anomalies: aircraft-equipment-problem-critical|deviation-discrepancy-procedural-published-material-policy|deviation-discrepancy-procedural-maintenance|deviation-discrepancy-procedural-far

Synopsis

A CESSNA 402C ACFT EXPERIENCED ENGINE FAILURE WHEN RIGHT FUEL SELECTOR WAS SELECTED TO CROSSFEED FROM LEFT FUEL TANK WITH VALVE OPENED INDEX REVERSED.

Narrative

ACFT R ENG FAILED INFLT WHEN THE R FUEL SELECTOR WAS SELECTED TO XFEED FROM L FUEL TANK. ACFT LANDED SAFELY WITHOUT INCIDENT. UPON INVESTIGATION IT WAS DETERMINED THAT THE L FUEL XFEED SHUT-OFF VALVE WAS AT FAULT WHICH HAD BEEN CHANGED THE DAY BEFORE THIS INCIDENT. THE FAULT WAS CAUSED BY THE CTL ARM ON THE VALVE HAVING BEEN INSTALLED WITH THE VALVE INCORRECTLY INDEXED TO THE CTL ARM WHEN THE VALVE WAS INSTALLED. WITH THE VALVE IMPROPERLY INDEXED THIS PUT THE VALVE IN A CLOSED POS WHEN THE CTL ARM WAS AGAINST THE OPEN STOP ON THE VALVE. THIS WOULD NOT ALLOW FUEL TO XFER TO THE R ENG WHEN THE R FUEL SELECTOR VALVE WAS SELECTED TO XFEED FROM THE L FUEL TANK. THE INSTALLED XFEED SHUTOFF VALVE WAS A REPAIRED UNIT AND THE CTL ARM WAS NOT INSTALLED. THE CTL ARM WAS REMOVED FROM THE OLD VALVE BEING REPLACED AND WAS INSTALLED ON THE REPAIRED VALVE. THE REPAIRED VALVE HAD 2 HOLES DRILLED IN THE SHAFT TO CHOOSE FROM FOR INDEXING THE VALVE TO THE CTL ARM. NORMALLY A NEW VALVE COMES WITH THE CTL ARM ALREADY INSTALLED AND PROPERLY INDEXED. THE ACFT WAS TEST FLOWN AFTER THE VALVE HAD BEEN REPLACED WITH NO PROBS NOTED BUT THE XFEED SYS WAS NEVER USED DURING THE FLT. THE FAILURE TO PROPERLY PERFORM THE OPERATIONAL CHK ON THE XFEED SYS AFTER INSTALLATION OF THE REPAIRED L XFEED SHUTOFF VALVE RESULTED IN THE ENG FAILURE. HAD THE OPERATIONAL CHK BEEN DONE THE PROB WOULD HAVE BEEN DISCOVERED AND CORRECTED. TO PREVENT THIS PROB A PROPER OPERATIONAL CHK OF THIS SYS SHOULD BE DONE IN ACCORDANCE WITH THE MAINT MANUAL WHENEVER MAINT IS PERFORMED ON THE SYS. CALLBACK CONVERSATION WITH RPTR REVEALED THE FOLLOWING INFO: RPTR STATED THE MAINT MANUAL DOES IN FACT HAVE A PROC TO VERIFY FUEL FLOW DOES EXISTS AFTER XFEED VALVE HAS BEEN REPLACED. THE OPERATIONAL CHK WAS NOT ACCOMPLISHED. RPTR COULD NOT VERIFY IF THE 2 HOLES ON THE XFEED VALVE SHAFT NOTED IN HIS RPT WERE STANDARD FOR THESE TYPE OF XFEED VALVES. RPTR STATED NO MASTER INDEXING EXISTS ON THE XFEED SHAFT.

Source: NASA Aviation Safety Reporting System (public domain). Reports are voluntary submissions and are not verified by NASA.