ERA16LA183

During preflight inspection of the airplane, the pilot discovered three baby birds in the cockpit. After removing the birds, he continued his preflight inspection, looking for a nest. He noticed that the rag normally used to cover one of the elevator openings was missing, but he did not find a nest inside. Immediately after takeoff, about 100 ft above ground level, a fire started within the engine compartment, and smoke began to enter the cockpit. The pilot turned the airplane back toward the runway, but lost control as the airplane touched down because his visibility was limited by the smoke. The occupants egressed the airplane, which was subsequently consumed by fire. Postaccident examination of the wreckage revealed remnants of a bird nest between the exhaust manifold and the engine firewall, which was the likely origin of the fire.

On May 13, 2016, about 1430 central daylight time, a Piper PA-22, N5823Z, was substantially damaged during an emergency landing at Sumner County Regional Airport (M33) Gallatin, Tennessee. The private pilot and two passengers were uninjured. The airplane was privately owned and operated. Visual meteorological conditions prevailed and no flight plan was filed for the local, personal flight that was conducted under the provisions of Title 14 Code of Federal Regulations Part 91. The pilot stated that when he arrived at the airplane to conduct his preflight inspection, the cockpit area contained "three live baby birds." He did not see any sign of a nest, but did notice that one of the elevator openings was not covered up by a rag that he placed in the opening several months before. He resumed his preflight inspection and did not see any additional evidence of bird activity or a nest. After engine start and a 5-minute taxi, he departed runway 35. During the initial climb, about 100 feet above ground level, black smoke started pouring out of the left side rudder area. The pilot attempted to make a 180-degree steep turn back to runway 17. During the turn, fire emanated out of the left side of the rudder pedal area. The pilot stated he attempted to stomp out the fire near his left foot but was unable to extinguish the blaze. The cockpit filled with smoke and limited ability to see the runway. He touched down at an airspeed between 30 and 40 knots but could not see the runway. A witness reported that after touching down on the runway, the airplane's "tail started going back and forth." The airplane bounced several times, swerved and departed the right side of the paved surface of the runway and nosed over into the grass, approximately two-thirds of the way down the runway. After it came to rest, the passengers and pilot evacuated before the airplane became engulfed in flames. According to the pilot and Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) records, the pilot held a private pilot certificate with a rating for airplane single-engine land. The pilot reported 959 total hours of flight experience, and 159 of those hours where in the accident airplane make and model. According to FAA and airplane maintenance records, an annual inspection was completed on September 1, 2015 and at that time the airframe had accumulated 4,013 total hours. The airplane came to rest on its nose, about 45 degrees nose down, approximately 3,700 feet down runway 17, and 6 feet off the paved surface. Both propeller blades exhibited chordwise scraping and were curled aft. The engine compartment was fire-damaged, with the most severe damage located aft of the engine near the firewall. The fire propagated aft from the engine compartment, through the cockpit and to the left wing, fuselage and tail. The right wing and right elevator remained covered with fabric and remained largely intact. An exterior examination of the engine revealed remnants of a bird nest between the top of the exhaustmanifold and the firewall. No other abnormalities were noted.