# Incident 20200530007259I: Barry E Fitch ZENITH 601 HDS, Saluda, SC, May 30, 2020 - Type: FAA incident report (Accident/Incident Data System), as reported - Date: May 30, 2020, 11:00 local time - Place: Saluda, SC - Airport: Saluda County - Damage: Minor damage - Phase of flight: Cruise/Level Flight - Operating rules: General operating rules (Part 91) - Location: 33.9268° N, 81.7946° W: Placed by OpenAirDocs at SALUDA COUNTY (6J4), within about a mile (OpenAirDocs) - Nearby events: https://openairdocs.org/map.md?lat=33.9268&lon=-81.7946&mi=10 - Aircraft: N195BW (not matched to a registry record) - Reported make and model: BARRY E FITCH ZENITH 601 HDS - Reported engine: SUBARU ALL MDLS A/B - People aboard: 1 - Fatal injuries: 0 - Other injuries: 0 - Pilot certificates: Private pilot - Pilot flight hours: 327 total, 65 in this make and model, 23 in the last 90 days - FAA source: FAA Aviation Safety Information Portal (https://asip.faa.gov/) - Page: https://openairdocs.org/incident/20200530007259I ## Narrative As the FAA filed it, in capitals; the FAA replaces private details with ^PRIVACY DATA OMITTED^. GREENWOOD, SC: N195BW, EXP, LANDED IN A RURAL AREA DUE TO CONTROL-ABILITY ISSUES. AIRCRAFT SUSTAINED A PROP STRIKE, AND DAMAGE TO BOTH WINGS. POB: 1, INJURIES: NONE, DAMAGE: EXTENT UNKNOWN. 05/30/2020 1500Z PILOT STATEMENT: ON SATURDAY, MAY 30, I DEPARTED KAIK AT APPROXIMATELY 10:45 AM TOWARDS 6J4 FOR AN EXPECTED 10 MINUTE FLIGHT. AFTER ABOUT 2 OR 3 MINUTES, I NOTICED THE PLANE TRYING TO BANK TO THE RIGHT. IT WAS ONLY A NUISANCE AT FIRST AND I THOUGHT IT WAS JUST A STRONG WIND, BUT IT GOT PROGRESSIVELY WORSE BY THE MINUTE, UNTIL I HAD DIFFICULTY HOLDING THE PLANE UPRIGHT. FINALLY, IT GOT SO BAD THAT I DECIDED THAT I HAD TO PUT IT DOWN WHILE I STILL HAD SOME CONTROL. I WAS APPROXIMATELY 2 MILES SOUTH OF 6J4 I SPOTTED A NICE LOOKING PASTURE AND WAS COMMITTED TO LANDING THERE UNTIL I SPOTTED POWER LINES IN THE WAY. JUST TO MY RIGHT I NOTICED A WIDE LOGGING ROAD AND DIVERTED TO THERE. I MANAGED TO PUT IT DOWN SUCCESSFULLY, I THOUGHT, UNTIL MY RIGHT WING CAUGHT SOMETHING THAT PULLED ME OFF THE ROAD INTO THE FRESHLY LOGGED AREA WHERE THE PLANE SLID OVER LARGE STUMPS. I WAS UNHARMED. MY THEORY, OF WHICH I AM PRETTY CERTAIN, IS THAT ALL THE FUEL IN THE WING TANKS SIPHONED OVER TO THE RIGHT SIDE TANK. AT THE TIME, I JUDGED THAT THE PLANE WOULD SOON BE NO LONGER FLYABLE. I THINK I FIGURED OUT THE CONTROL PROBLEM WHILE STILL IN THE AIR. UNFORTUNATELY, BY THE TIME I DID, IT WAS TOO LATE. THE AIRCRAFT HAS ELECTRONIC FUEL INJECTION WHICH REQUIRES A RETURN SYSTEM. I USED AN ELECTRONIC VALVE TO DIRECT THE FUEL TO THE PROPER TANK. WHILE I CANNOT PROVE IT, I THINK THAT VALVE FAILED AND SHUNTED THE FUEL TO THE RIGHT WING TANK INSTEAD OF THE LEFT. THERE IS EVIDENCE FOR THIS BY THE FACT THAT I HAD APPROXIMATELY 7 GALLONS OF FUEL IN THE LEFT TANK WHEN I LEFT AIKEN. AFTER ONLY AN 8 OR 9 MINUTE FLIGHT, WHEN I CHECKED AT THE LANDING SITE, THERE WAS NO VISIBLE FUEL IN THE LEFT TANK AND THE RIGHT WAS FULL. THE PLANE BURNS 5 GALLONS PER HOUR. PLEASE NOTE THAT WE DRAINED THE FUEL IN ORDER TO RETRIEVE THE PLANE SAFELY . IT IS MY UNDERSTANDING THAT THE AIRCRAFT SHOULD HAVE STILL BEEN FLYABLE UNDER THESE CONDITIONS, BUT I CAN ASSURE YOU IT WASN?T. 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.