Following a very recent accident at our flying club I thought I'd resurrect an old but still pertinent issue... post crash fires and poor fuel tank design and/or construction. I don't want to turn this into a specific make/model bashing thread but hopefully more of a warning and/or learning tool.
The gyro just a few minutes after the crash. Note the stains on the ground from the fuel run-off.
Yesterday a student pilot was doing solo circuit training, and towards the end of the hour his landings started to get worse as he got progressively more tired. His instructor recognised this and told him to call it a day while he was on the downwind leg. On final approach he flared while still way too high, ran out of ideas and tried to add power with the nose pointing way up and literally fell out of the sky, with the gyro bouncing hard on the runway and rolling onto its right hand side.
This image shows the final resting position relative to the runway.
Luckily the student was able to walk away with relatively minor injuries. The gyro is a complete write-off. But it could have been so much worse. During the impact the mast was bent backwards and somehow tore the entire top of the 72lt fuel tank right off. As the gyro went over about 50lt of fuel poured onto both the ground and the student in seconds, who was unable to free himself as he lay there soaked in fuel. Luckily for him the gyro landed right side down with the hot turbo on the other side pointing at the sky. Had the gyro bounced onto its left side with the hot turbo under the gushing fuel tank things might have been very different. He may well have burnt
to death after surviving the crash impact.
The entire top of the fuel tank was ripped off as the mast bent backwards.
This particular gyro has a rigid fibreglass tank with no "give" or flexibility. Other makes have softer plastic tanks which rupture less easily. But the fact remains that post impact fires are a very real issue for us gyro pilots. Other than wearing fire resistant flight suits (which most of us don't really do, especially in very warm climates) there must be a better way to prevent this from happening. Surely the technology is out there for the bigger manufacturers to embrace. Not sure what the answer is... Bladders inside the tanks? Would be interest to know if any have solved this problem. I've got plenty of gyro hours and hardly ever give this a thought, until I witnessed this accident.
Another view showing the ground still soaked in fuel, especially in and around the cockpit.
Would welcome thoughts from anyone who has expertise in this area...
Regards
Jean.
The gyro just a few minutes after the crash. Note the stains on the ground from the fuel run-off.
Yesterday a student pilot was doing solo circuit training, and towards the end of the hour his landings started to get worse as he got progressively more tired. His instructor recognised this and told him to call it a day while he was on the downwind leg. On final approach he flared while still way too high, ran out of ideas and tried to add power with the nose pointing way up and literally fell out of the sky, with the gyro bouncing hard on the runway and rolling onto its right hand side.
This image shows the final resting position relative to the runway.
Luckily the student was able to walk away with relatively minor injuries. The gyro is a complete write-off. But it could have been so much worse. During the impact the mast was bent backwards and somehow tore the entire top of the 72lt fuel tank right off. As the gyro went over about 50lt of fuel poured onto both the ground and the student in seconds, who was unable to free himself as he lay there soaked in fuel. Luckily for him the gyro landed right side down with the hot turbo on the other side pointing at the sky. Had the gyro bounced onto its left side with the hot turbo under the gushing fuel tank things might have been very different. He may well have burnt
to death after surviving the crash impact.
The entire top of the fuel tank was ripped off as the mast bent backwards.
This particular gyro has a rigid fibreglass tank with no "give" or flexibility. Other makes have softer plastic tanks which rupture less easily. But the fact remains that post impact fires are a very real issue for us gyro pilots. Other than wearing fire resistant flight suits (which most of us don't really do, especially in very warm climates) there must be a better way to prevent this from happening. Surely the technology is out there for the bigger manufacturers to embrace. Not sure what the answer is... Bladders inside the tanks? Would be interest to know if any have solved this problem. I've got plenty of gyro hours and hardly ever give this a thought, until I witnessed this accident.
Another view showing the ground still soaked in fuel, especially in and around the cockpit.
Would welcome thoughts from anyone who has expertise in this area...
Regards
Jean.
