ERA22LA425

The student pilot stated that he and a flight instructor departed on a local area instructional flight with about 28 gallons of fuel, enough for 3 or more hours of flying. With the fuel selector on the left fuel tank, they performed various training maneuvers and flew to a nearby airport where they switched to the right fuel tank. They performed three full-stop landings before returning to the practice area. After about 1 hour of flight time, they entered the traffic pattern on the downwind to base leg and switched the fuel selector back to the left fuel tank before beginning their final approach. On the final leg of the traffic pattern, they elected to perform a go-around and added full power; however, the engine lost all power without warning. Too low to troubleshoot, the instructor took the flight controls and performed a forced landing in a corn field, which resulted in substantial damage to the airplane. As fuel leaked down from the right tank, the student pilot and flight instructor evacuated. The student reported that, during the egress, he turned off the electrical master switch off and switched the fuel tank into the 12 o’clock position. Postaccident examination of the engine did not reveal evidence of any preimpact mechanical malfunctions or failures that would preclude normal engine operation. The left fuel tank was compromised during impact, and about 4 gallons of fuel were drained out of the right wing tank by first responders. The student pilot’s description that he manipulated the fuel selector to the 12 o’clock position after the accident and during his egress would be consistent with him attempting to turn off fuel flow in order to mitigate the chances of a posaccident fire. However, the position of the fuel selector handle after the accident was actually the right fuel tank position. Given that the loss of engine power occurred shortly after switching fuel tanks, it is likely that the student pilot inadvertently placed the fuel selector in the OFF position during the flight, thus eventually starving the engine for fuel during the attempted go-around after the available fuel supply in the fuel system forward of the fuel selector had been exhausted. The flight instructor was likely unable to confirm the fuel selection because the selector handle was installed on the sidewall behind the student’s left leg.

On September 18, 2022, about 1118 eastern standard time, a Piper PA-22-150, N6076D, was substantially damaged when it was involved in an accident near Great Barrington, Massachusetts. The student pilot and instructor were not injured. The airplane was operated as a Title 14 Code of Federal Regulations Part 91instructional flight. The student pilot, who was also the owner of the airplane, purchased the airplane 10 months before the accident to start his flight training. About 1015 on the day of the accident, he and the flight instructor departed Walter J Koladza Airport (GBR) Great Barrington, Massachusetts, with about 28 gallons of fuel (3 hours + endurance) and began the flight on the left tank. They flew to Columbia County Airport (1B1) Hudson, New York, and switched to the right tank. They performed three takeoffs and landings to a full stop before conducting basic private pilot maneuvers in the practice area. The student pilot reported the flight as uneventful and the total flight time when they returned to GBR was about 1 hour. The instructor reported that they checked the carburetor heat several times during the flight and switched fuel tanks back to the left tank as they entered the downwind to base leg of the airport traffic pattern. During final approach, which was high and a little fast, the student pilot attempted a go-around. Shortly after adding full throttle and initiating a climb, the engine lost power. There was “no surging, no sputtering, it just quit.” After pumping the throttle with no response, and being too low to troubleshoot, the instructor took the flight controls and performed a forced landing in a corn field. The airplane settled into the corn and immediately “dug in” and spun to the left before coming to a stop on its left side. According to the student pilot, as fuel leaked down from the right tank, the student pilot and flight instructor evacuated. During the egress, the student reported that he turned the master switch to OFF and switched the fuel tank selector handle (which was installed on the sidewall behind his left leg) into the 12 o’clock position. According to the airframe manufacturer and photographs of the wreckage, that position was the right tank position, and was not the OFF position. First responders subsequently drained about 4 gallons of fuel from the right wing. Examination of the airplane by a Federal Aviation Administration inspector revealed that the left wing was severed, and the fuselage was crushed in several locations. In addition, the left fuel tank was breached. An examination of the engine did not reveal any mechanical malfunctions or irregularities that would preclude normal operation.