ERA21LA328 · Piper PA-28-140

The purpose of the cross-country flight was so that the private pilot could accrue flight time to meet the requirements for a commercial pilot certificate. During the flight, the private pilot was in the left seat and a flight instructor was in the right seat. During the descent to their destination airport, the private pilot switched fuel tanks and, about 700 feet above mean sea level (msl), there was a loss of engine power. The flight instructor assumed control of the airplane, declared an emergency and conducted a forced landing. During the forced landing, the airplane was substantially damaged, and the private pilot was seriously injured. During recovery of the wreckage form the accident site, 5 gallons of fuel were drained from the left wing fuel tank and 10 gallons of fuel were drained from the right wing fuel tank. Examination of the wreckage revealed that the fuel selector and fuel selector valve cover were not installed per the manufacturer’s guidance. The selector valve cover had been improperly installed directly to the interior side panel with oversize screws, which interfered with the movement of the selector handle. The cover was not in the correct mounting orientation, the selector cover attach bracket was not installed, nor was the spring-loaded metal stop (which would keep the fuel selector valve from inadvertently being placed in the FUEL OFF position). The fuel selector was observed between the L TANK (left fuel tank) and FUEL OFF position. Prior to verification of the fuel selector position, fuel line continuity could not be established with low pressure air from the left or right wing root fuel lines to the gascolator. Removal of the cover also confirmed that the fuel selector valve was positioned between the left fuel tank and fuel off positions. Detents in the fuel selector valve were also confirmed, but the fuel selector valve cover selector position labeling did not align with the detent positions as the fuel selector valve cover had not been properly indexed. After the examination, when the fuel selector valve was placed in either the correct left fuel tank or right fuel tank positions, the engine was able to be run without any anomalies. Based on this information, the loss of engine power was most likely the result of fuel starvation, after the flight crew inadvertently placed the fuel selector into a position between the left fuel tank and off positions. Maintenance records indicated that the airplane had undergone a 100-hour inspection 20 days before the accident. However, 13 days before the accident, a Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) inspector performed an inspection of the airplane and identified 42 discrepancies, including that the fuel selector valve handle should be painted red and that the installed fuel tank selector placard was unsatisfactory. After discussing the condition of the airplane with one of the owners, the inspector was advised that they were not going to use the aircraft at the flight school. Maintenance records indicated that 8 days before the accident, a mechanic installed a fuel selector valve cover and certified that all work was accomplished in accordance with the manufacturer’s maintenance manual. None of the sections explicitly listed in the maintenance log entry, however, addressed the installation of the fuel selector valve or fuel selector valve cover. Based on this information, the improper installation of the fuel selector valve cover, which was accomplished at the direction of the operator/owner, likely directly contributed to the flight crew’s incorrection positioning of the fuel selector valve.

Verbatim NTSB analysis and probable cause from the NTSB dataset