- Date
- July 22, 1986, 10:40 local (15:40 UTC)
- Place
- Norfolk, NE
- Injuries
- 1 uninjured
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Phase of flight
- Approach
- Aircraft
- N62719Piper PA-23-250T
- Weather
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Status
- Completed
- Report
- Approved by Office Director
- FAA report
- 19860722035439A
- Case key
- 34217
From the NTSB’s public API. By law, NTSB reports can’t be used as evidence in lawsuits over the accident.
On this page
Sequence of events
NTSB’s coding before 2008: each occurrence and phase of flight, and the causes and factors under it. The codes are defined in NTSB’s coding manual.
Analysis
A fire started inflight in the left wheel well and nacelle area just after the pilot turned on the electric fuel pumps during the turn to final approach. The airplane was landed and the pilot evacuated safely. According to witnesses, the airplane appeared to be on a level plane when the pilot evacuated the airplane but later after the fire progressed, the left side of the airplane dropped when the fire burned through the left main gear area and the left main spar. Afterward, the left main gear appeared to be collapsed from the fire. A fractured fuel line was found near the left engine driven fuel pump. A metallurgist stated the fracture had not originated during the tightening process and the geometry of the separated surfaces was typical of bending loads.
Aircraft
- Registration
- N62719
- Reported as
- Piper PA-23-250T
- Category
- Airplane
- Serial number
- 27-7654173
- Airframe hours
- 1,820
- Engine
- Lycoming LTIO-540-C1A, 250 horsepower, reciprocating
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Fire
- In-Flight
- Flight
- Personal · Part 91
- Registered owner
- Alan D. Dale
- Airworthiness certificate
- Standard, Normal
- Last inspection
- Annual · December 19, 1985
- Departed
- LAN · Lansing, MI
- Airport
- OFK · Karl Stefan, runway 19, 5,800 × 150 ft, asphalt
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
- 45
- Certificate
- Private
- Airplane ratings
- Single-engine land, Multi-engine land
- Instrument ratings
- Airplane
- Medical
- Class 3, Valid Medical--w/ waivers/lim
- Seat
- Left
- Flight hours
- 885 total · 735 as pilot in command · 16 in the last 90 days · 3 in the last 24 hours
Weather
- Conditions
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Wind
- 190° at 5 knots
- Visibility
- 18 statute miles
- Lowest ceiling
- None
- Temperature
- 73 °F, dew point 64 °F
- Altimeter
- 30.00 inHg
FAA reports on this event · 1
The FAA’s own accident and incident reports, matched to the aircraft by N-number and date.
Other investigations on N62719 · 1
Matched to the same aircraft by N-number and date.