- Date
- January 23, 2023, 18:44 local (23:44 UTC)
- Place
- Raleigh/Durham, NC
- Injuries
- 2 uninjured
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Phase of flight
- Standing
- Aircraft
- N747PKPiper PA28
- Defining event
- Standing-engine(s) start-up: Fire/smoke (non-impact)
- Weather
- Visual (VMC) · Dusk
- Status
- Completed
- Report
- Approved by Office Director
- Investigation class
- Class 4 - Basic report with no Prelim publish
- NTSB office
- Eastern Region Aviation
- Parties
- FAA/FSDO
- FAA report
- 20230123000489A
- Case key
- 106640
From the NTSB’s public API. By law, NTSB reports can’t be used as evidence in lawsuits over the accident.
On this page
Probable cause
The pilot's flooding the engine with fuel during a cold engine start, which resulted in an engine fire.
Findings · 2
NTSB’s coded findings. Those marked are part of the probable cause; the rest are factors or other findings. Under each, the cases with the same finding.
Sequence of events
The events NTSB coded, in order, by phase of flight. The defining event is the one that best describes the accident. Under each, the cases with the same event anywhere in their sequence.
Analysis
The pilot and his passenger prepared for a night flight in the flying club’s airplane to maintain the pilot’s currency. He tried to start the engine three times, priming the engine a total of 11 times, and “pumping” the throttle during one attempt, but it did not start. Concerned that he may have flooded the engine, he waited 5 minutes before attempting another start with full throttle and mixture at idle/cutoff. After this attempt, the passenger noted smoke and he realized that the engine was on fire. He told his passenger to egress and attempted to extinguish the fire with the onboard fire extinguisher; however, the fire substantially damaged the airplane’s the fuselage, engine mounts, and firewall. The pilot reported no mechanical malfunctions or failures with the airplane that would have precluded normal operation. The Pilot’s Operating Handbook for the airplane suggested priming 1 to 3 times before engine start.
Aircraft
- Registration
- N747PK
- Reported as
- Piper PA28 (180)
- Category
- Airplane
- Serial number
- 28-4647
- Built
- 1968
- Airframe hours
- 6,174.8
- Engine
- Lycoming O-360-A4A, 180 horsepower, reciprocating
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Fire
- On-Ground
- Flight
- Personal · Part 91
- Operator
- Raleigh Flying Club LLC
- Registered owner
- Raleigh Flying Club LLC
- Airworthiness certificate
- Standard, Utility; Standard, Normal
- Last inspection
- Annual · September 27, 2022 · 71.5 hours before
- Destination
- HNZ · Oxford, NC
- Airport
- RDU · Raleigh-Durham Intl
- Equipment
- Auto-pilot, ADS-B, Stall warning system, Electronic primary flight display, Electronic multifunction display
Matched to the registry by N-number and the event date; the registry’s history has gaps, so older matches can be wrong. Compare the reported make and model.
Flight crew
As NTSB recorded them. NTSB leaves out names.
- Role
- Pilot
- Age
- 48
- Injuries
- None
- Certificate
- Private
- Airplane ratings
- Single-engine land
- Instrument ratings
- Airplane
- Medical
- Class 3, Without waivers/limitations
- Last flight review
- April 26, 2022
- Seat
- Left
- Restraint
- Lap only
- Flight hours
- 224 total · 48 in this make and model · 159 as pilot in command · 11 in the last 90 days · 0 in the last 30 days · 0 in the last 24 hours
Weather
- Conditions
- Visual (VMC) · Dusk
- Wind
- 310° at 8 knots
- Visibility
- 10 statute miles
- Temperature
- 45 °F, dew point 25 °F
- Altimeter
- 30.12 inHg
- Observed at
- RDU, 1 nm away
- METAR
- METAR KRDU 232351Z 31008KT 270V340 10SM FEW060 FEW070 07/M04 A3012 RMK AO2 SLP201 T00721044 10111 20072 52041=
Docket · 6
The files NTSB released with the investigation on June 15, 2023, on NTSB’s docket system: statements, records, photos and specialists’ reports. 7.6 MB in all.
FAA reports on this event · 1
The FAA’s own accident and incident reports, matched to the aircraft by N-number and date.