# Incident 20130905020319I: Piper PA-28-181, September 5, 2013 - Type: FAA incident report (Accident/Incident Data System), as reported - Date: September 5, 2013, 13:15 local time - Airport: Falcon Field - Damage: Minor damage - Phase of flight: Ground/Ramp/Ma - Operating rules: Pilot school (Part 141) - Operator: B4VS - Aircraft: N4133K, a cancelled registration (https://openairdocs.org/deregistered/N4133K-2022-01-25) (OpenAirDocs) - Registry model: Piper PA-28-181 (registry code 7102807, https://openairdocs.org/model/piper-pa-28-181) (OpenAirDocs) - Registry engine: Lycoming O&VO-360 series (registry code 41514, https://openairdocs.org/engine/lycoming-o-vo-360-series) (OpenAirDocs) - Reported make and model: PIPER PA-28-181 - Reported engine: LYCOMING O&VO-360 SER - People aboard: 2 - Fatal injuries: 0 - Other injuries: 0 - FAA source: FAA Aviation Safety Information Portal (https://asip.faa.gov/) - Page: https://openairdocs.org/incident/20130905020319I ## Narrative As the FAA filed it, in capitals; the FAA replaces private details with ^PRIVACY DATA OMITTED^. OPERATOR EXPERIENCED ENGINE FIRE UPON START UP WHICH CAUSED MINOR DAMAGE TO THE ENGINE COMPARTMENT. THE AIRCRAFT HAD BEEN FLOWN RECENTLY AND WAS HOT WHEN PILOT TRIED TO START ENGINE. WHEN INITIALLY STARTED THE ENGINE RAN ROUGH FOR A FEW SECONDS AND THEN SHUT DOWN. ANOTHER ATTEMPT TO START THE ENGINE WAS UNSUCESSFUL AND THE PILOT WAITED HALF A MINUTE TO TRY RUNNING STARTER AGAIN. UPON THIRD ATTEMPT TO START ENGINE OBSERVERS ON THE RAMP YELLED THAT THERE WAS FIRE. THE PILOT SHUT DOWN ENGINE AND CONTROLS WHILE THE SECOND PILOT EXITED THE AIRCRAFT AND WAS ABLE TO EXTINGUISH THE FLAMES COMING FROM THE ENGINE COWLING AREA WITH THE AIRCRAFT FIRE EXTINGUISHER. AIRCRAFT WAS INSPECTED BY FAA INSPECTOR AND OPERATOR MAINTENANCE PERSONNEL. AFTER INSPECTING THE ENGINE COMPARTMENT IT BECAME APPARENT THAT THE FIRE WAS CAUSED BY FUEL WEEPING FROM THE AREA AROUND CARBURETOR FUEL INLET SCREEN GASKET. NO FUEL WAS VISIBLE WITH AIRCRAFT SITTING WITH FUEL SELECTOR TURNED ON AND NO PRESSURE ON THE ENGINE FUEL SYSTEM. HOWEVER, WHEN THE AIRCRAFT ELECTRICAL ENGINE FUEL PUMP WAS ACTIVATED FUEL BEGAN TO WEEP BETWEEN THE COPPER LOCKING GASKET UNDER THE SEAT OF THE CARBURETOR FUEL INLET SCREEN AND THE CARBURETOR HOUSING. WHILE DISASSEMBLING THE FUEL INLET FILTER SCREEN THERE WAS FOUND TO BE AN INTERFERENCE FIT BETWEEN THE COPPER (LOCK) GASKET AND THE FUEL INLET SCREEN WHEN IT WAS THREADED INTO THE MOUNTING BOSS. THIS INTERFERENCE ALLOWED THE COPPER GASKET TO BEND AND STOPPED THE FUEL INLET SCREEN FROM FULLY TIGHTENING AGAINST THE CARBURETOR BOSS FACE. THE INTERFERENCE WAS NOT VISIBLE NOR ABLE TO BE PHYSICALLY DETERMINED UNTIL FUEL PRESSURE WAS APPLIED TO THE SYSTEM. ## Other reports on N4133K (1) Matched to the same aircraft by N-number and date. - [Incident 20071107827619I](https://openairdocs.org/incident/20071107827619I), Nov 7, 2007: Piper PA28181 (N4133K), Mesa, AZ, Substantial damage. (-23) The pilot landed on 22R at Falcon field airport (ffz) in Mesa, AZ. Upon touching down the aircraft veered towards the left of the runway and departed the… From the FAA Accident/Incident Data System. Reports are matched to registry aircraft by N-number and event date, checked against the reported make and model; the registry's history has gaps, so older matches can be wrong. Compare the reported make and model. For accidents, the NTSB's own investigation is the fuller record. --- OpenAirDocs.org is an independent research project of [Contrail Labs](https://contraillabs.com/). It is not affiliated with the FAA or the NTSB. Source documents are U.S. government works in the public domain.