Mainair Blade 912, G-BZFS, 10 April 2010
Mainair Blade 912, G-BZFS
Summary:
The accident flight occurred on the first flight of the day. The aircraft engine and pre-takeoff checks at Caernarfon Airport were satisfactory. The aircraft was taxied out onto Runway 02 for a departure on intersecting Runway 08. The engine temperatures and pressures were reported as normal during the rolling takeoff and the engine power was reduced from 5,300 rpm to 4,800 rpm after becoming airborne to reduce the pitch attitude. At approximately 200 ft in the climb the engine ‘coughed’ twice and then stopped. The pilot turned to the left as there were no landing options ahead of the aircraft and declared a MAYDAY. He considered that all of his landing options were poor but he touched down successfully on a small grassed area adjacent to the airfield. However, during the landing roll, the aircraft ran across a drainage ditch and sustained damage to the front end pod, nose wheel and aircraft structure. The pilot had become aware of debris in the fuel tank shortly after acquiring the aircraft earlier in the year. However, he had been advised that the fuel filter would catch any debris until such time that a suitable opportunity for cleaning the system arose. The aircraft had been successfully flown on the day prior to the accident. Subsequent to the accident, debris was also found in the muslin fuel filter and in the fuel line before the filter. The source of the debris was not identified but reported as a build up rather than solid debris. Other than the presence of debris in the fuel system, the pilot identified other factors associated with the accident. The use of a rolling takeoff and a reduction in power after becoming airborne resulted in the aircraft being at a lower altitude over the airport boundary which reduced the forced landing options. The pilot noted that, for a takeoff from Runway 08, the number of reasonable options for a forced landing from low altitude was very limited.
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