20180323014619A

Accident · Substantial damage

FAA accident report · Fairchild Funk M62C F-23A · Columbia, TN · March 23, 2018

Date: March 23, 2018 · 16:44 local
Place: Columbia, TN
Phase of flight: Cruise/Level Flight
Operating rules: General operating rules (Part 91)
Damage: Substantial damage
Aircraft: N1131Z
NTSB investigation: NTSBERA18LA113
Reported as: Fairchild Funk M62C F-23A
Reported engine: JACOBS R-755B2
People aboard: 1
Fatal injuries: 0
Other injuries: 0
Pilot’s certificate: Private pilot
Pilot’s flight hours: 371 total34 in this make and model16 in the last 90 days

N1131ZRegistered now · Fairchild Funk M62C F-23AS/N 9 · Built 1965 Airframe modelFairchild Funk M62C F-23A Engine modelJacobs R-755B2Reciprocating

From the FAA’s Accident/Incident Data System (AIDS), through its Aviation Safety Information Portal, as reported. The NTSB investigates accidents separately, and its record of an accident is the fuller one. The aircraft is matched to the registry 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.

What happened

The FAA’s narrative, in sentence case. The FAA writes it in capitals and removes private details.

20 Minutes into flight, pilot switched from left tank to right tank. Engine ran for about a minute and then started to run rough. Pilot switched back to the left tank and turned on boost pumps. Engine failed in flight. Right tank had 3/4 fuel at the scene. The left tank was ruptured. The tank still had some fuel in it and there was a bladder placed uner the wing by the sheriff's office to catch fuel. The bladder was 3/4 full when I arrived.

As the FAA filed it

20 MINUTES INTO FLIGHT, PILOT SWITCHED FROM LEFT TANK TO RIGHT TANK. ENGINE RAN FOR ABOUT A MINUTE AND THEN STARTED TO RUN ROUGH. PILOT SWITCHED BACK TO THE LEFT TANK AND TURNED ON BOOST PUMPS. ENGINE FAILED IN FLIGHT. RIGHT TANK HAD 3/4 FUEL AT THE SCENE. THE LEFT TANK WAS RUPTURED. THE TANK STILL HAD SOME FUEL IN IT AND THERE WAS A BLADDER PLACED UNER THE WING BY THE SHERIFF'S OFFICE TO CATCH FUEL. THE BLADDER WAS 3/4 FULL WHEN I ARRIVED.

NTSB investigation

The NTSB’s investigation of this event, with its probable cause and findings. Matched to this report by N-number and date.

NTSB ERA18LA113Accident · No injuriesLimited investigationFinal reportColumbia, TNThe pilot's inadvertent selection of the fuel selector handle to the off position, which resulted in fuel starvation and a total loss of engine power.Mar 23, 2018 · Substantial damage