Emergency on Takeoff or Would You Have Planned for This?

8/9/2011
Posted in Flight Training

Tags: emergency, emergencies, engine failure, fuel pump

About a month ago, I was on the ramp talking with my instructors and their students when someone yelled for us to look at a Mooney that was making a turn very close to the ground. I caught sight of the aircraft about half way through her turn and realized that the pilot had taken off from runway 29, had an engine failure and made a left turn to land on runway 05.

Emergency on Takeoff or Would You Have Planned for This?

by: Marc Nathanson, LTC. USAF (ret), CFI, CFII, MEI, DPE

The Incident:

About a month ago, I was on the ramp talking with my instructors and their students when someone yelled for us to look at a Mooney that was making a turn very close to the ground. I caught sight of the aircraft about half way through her turn and realized that the pilot had taken off from runway 29, had an engine failure and made a left turn to land on runway 05. I was thankful as the gear came down half way around the turn (thanks to the tower informing the pilot that the landing gear was not down) and then the pilot successfully landed a little more than half way down the 5,000' landing surface. I expected to see the aircraft jerk and bounce and turn left or right as it went off the end of the runway, but it did not. The pilot was able to stop before the end and taxi off. As a matter of fact, he taxied all the way to one of the Fixed Base Operators (FBO) using engine power. There could only be one reason for his emergency turn back, engine failure, but how did he taxi back if the engine failed?

FAAST:

As a FAA Safety Team (FAAST) member (log onto faasafety.org to get to the WINGS portal and many other useful sites-well worth the visit) I went to the aircraft to see if I could help the pilot. He was a bit shaken but as composed as one could be considering the trauma of his experience. I introduced myself and explained that I was not a FAA Inspector, but was a FAAST team member and if he would mind telling me what happened. He agreed and explained what he experienced during this takeoff emergency.

Going Through the Emergency Procedures:

He said the engine run-up and Before Takeoff checks were all normal and the initial part of the takeoff was also normal until he was several hundred feet in the air. All of a sudden the engine started to run rough and then completely stopped (what is it that someone said about the deafening silence of an engine that has stopped running?). Someone must have taught him well as he went through his emergency procedures as he maintained altitude until emergency glide speed was attained. He switched fuel tanks which did not result in the restoration of power. At this point, he decided that he would rather try to turn back to the airport in the hope of landing on a flatter surface rather than into the trees and more forbidding terrain ahead. He knew that he was taking a big chance, but made the decision and stuck with it. He then turned on the electric fuel pump and the engine restarted and he completed the turn and landed using aircraft power-a miracle? Maybe he had his "ducks lined up" and really had a plan in place. Hard to tell from the conversation.

I asked him if he was supposed to take off with the electric fuel pump on and did not receive an intelligible answer which I took as a yes. I suggested that, from what he told me, I suspected the mechanical fuel pump might have failed. Sure enough, this was the case according to the pilot who called me after the mechanics determined cause of the engine failure.

MECHANICAL FUEL PUMP

Follow the POH or Aircraft Manual:

So what do we learn from this? Does the POH of your aircraft tell you to take off with the fuel pump on or off? Some aircraft, such as the Bonanza with a fuel injected engine, directs the pilot to leave it off as the electric fuel pump introduces too much fuel resulting in a mixture that is too rich which could cause the engine to stop or run roughly producing less power. If the POH or aircraft manual directs you to turn the electric fuel pump on, turn it on for the simple reason that, if the mechanical pump fails, the electric fuel pump is, in most engines, designed to provide fuel flow to the engine resulting in normal engine power output throughout the takeoff phase of flight when the fuel flow requirement is highest.

I teach not to turn the pump off until at an altitude where the aircraft can be easily turned back to the runway and make a safe landing or the altitude recommended by the POH. To look at the fuel pressure or flow indicator and to guard the electric fuel pump switch so you can turn it on again if there is an indication that the fuel flow is lost due to failure of the mechanical pump. Why take your hand away from the switch and have to search for it especially at night or when not that familiar with the aircraft and switch locations if the engine fails when it is turned off. How long should you guard the switch? I teach at least 3 seconds as I have found that the engine will quit in about this amount of time at takeoff fuel flow if the flow is interrupted. This many not be true of all engines so guarding the switch a few seconds longer is prudent.

ELECTRIC FUEL PUMP

Checking the pump:

There are several ways to check the pump. Of course, check the aircraft manual for guidance it gives and follow it. If you don't find any guidance here, you can check it when you prime the engine using the pump. You can check it again during the alternator check by turning on the pump and watching both the ammeter and fuel flow indicator respond to the increased electrical load and fuel flow or pressure.

Food for Thought:

We might consider this pilot lucky, but I believe that his training kicked in at just the right time. I was not in the aircraft so it is not fair to judge what he did. He reacted as he saw fit based on his knowledge, training and experience and did what he believed was the right thing to do. In this case, he was correct. Would you have reacted in the same manner as this pilot? Who knows. I know that I will give this more thought and come up with my own plan (actually, I have a plan that I teach) that is based on my knowledge, training and experience. See my article Playing the What if Game.

Fly safe. Fly prepared.

User Comments:

Flight Schools & Airports | News & Articles | Rental Plane Finder | Contact PilotPlanet