Student Pilot Emergency Landing - Didn't Switch Fuel Tanks

[okgood]

Listen to / See the ATC conversation here

VERO BEACH, Florida - On December 2, 2019, a Piper PA28 Warrior, N558PU, was substantially damaged during a forced, student pilot emergency landing in a field. The student pilot was not injured. The pilot departed VRB earlier in the day for a solo, cross-country flight. He took off from VRB with full fuel tanks and landed uneventfully at another airport. He intended to switch fuel tanks one hour into the flight, contrary to the flight school's policy of every 30 minutes. He forgot to switch tanks prior to landing at the other airport and did not switch tanks on the ground prior to departure. During the return flight to VRB, he again did not switch fuel tanks. While in the traffic pattern at VRB, the engine lost all power and quit. Unable to glide to runway 4, he performed a forced landing in a field to the south of the airport. During the landing roll, the airplane collided with a tree, separating the left wing from the airframe. Both wings and the fuselage were structurally damaged. The left wing fuel tank was not breached and contained no fuel. The right wing fuel tank was completely full of fuel. The cockpit fuel selector handle was found in the left tank position.The 22-year-old student pilot seemed stunned and without words.

[ATLcrew]

That's going to be a tough one to explain to the Chief Instructor.

[okgood]

a tough one to explain

Agreed. I assume the reason why the student pilot "seemed stunned" was because he realized he hadn't done what he had been taught. I learned in a high-wing, so switching tanks was not part or my routine. On my emergency checklist though, it does have a task to check the fuel selector switch and ensure it's on BOTH. I hate to speculate, but I assume the Piper checklist has a step to switch to the most full tank before take-off, and perhaps in the Cruise checklist to switch tanks, and perhaps in the Descend checklist to switch tanks again (just to make sure the engine doesn't quit). It seems this student didn't switch the tank at all during this flight.

[3WE]

That's going to be a tough one to explain to the Chief Instructor.

Why he didn’t “follow procedue” or why he didn’t follow the uber basic 787 to Piper Cub to Willys Jeep: “Keep an eye on the fuel indicator(s)”?

[Gabriel]

Why he didn’t “follow procedue” or why he didn’t follow the uber basic 787 to Piper Cub to Willys Jeep: “Keep an eye on the fuel indicator(s)”?

I flew more than 1 plane where the fuel indicator was working like crap or not working altogether. The fuel management procedure was based on dipstick and a conservative fuel burn estimate even in the rare instances where the fuel indicator was apparently working more or less ok.

[3WE]

I flew more than 1 plane where the fuel indicator was working like crap or not working altogether. The fuel management procedure was based on dipstick and a conservative fuel burn estimate even in the rare instances where the fuel indicator was apparently working more or less ok.

Is that good procedure for an environment that demands the utmost attention to safety?

[okgood]

The fuel management procedure was based on dipstick and a conservative fuel burn estimate

That's how I learned too. Never trust the gauges. Always know how much you have in the tanks, and when you get to some other airport, check the actual fuel burn and compare it to your calculations before you set off. Then, adjust your calculations accordingly for the next flight so that you are always learning about the fuel burn on that specific aircraft, regardless of what the gauges are telling you. Of course, you can use the fuel gauge and compare the reading to the actual burn, and then adjust how you interpret the gauge next time.

[Gabriel]

Is that good procedure for an environment that demands the utmost attention to safety?

I don't know, probably not, it should be BOTH. But that's the sad reality of general aviation. The fuel gauges do suck.

Here I would side Evan and call the FAA for help for more regulation and mandating technical standards for fuel gauges. A new TSO is in order.

[BoeingBobby]

Sigh!

[kent olsen]

Was being checked out in the owner's North American AT-6. He was in the front seat. Second day of my training. After flying in/out of a few local airports we stopped at another and taxied back for another takeoff from the 5000ft main runway. He lost track and didn't switch tanks. At about 50-100ft the engine quit. He switched tanks and started pumping the wobble pump. I had already pulled the throttle back, nosed over to maintain speed. Sitting in the back I couldn't see the runway until about 20ft. I pulled the nose up landed and fortunately rolled off the end of the runway into the grass. He looked back at me, said "my fault, we can go back and I'm signing you off!"