Pilot escapes as his plane lands in field

ASPLIT fuel hose may have been the cause of an incident which saw a light aircraft make a forced landing in a Devon field.

The experienced pilot of the aircraft escaped with minor injuries but the aeroplane’s engine and airframe were substantially damaged.

Details of the crash appear in the latest set of reports published by the Government’s Air Accident Investigation Branch.

The two-seater Jodel aircraft – built in 1967 – was taking off from a small grass airfield at Halwell in the South Hams when the accident happened on August 27 last year.

Only the pilot – a 67-year-old man with 463 hours of flying experience – was on board at the time. He had flown 207 of his hours in Jodel aircraft of the type he was flying on the day.

The AAIB report says that, shortly after take-off, the aircraft’s engine lost power and a successful forced landing was carried out into a nearby field.

Although the aircraft was substantially damaged, the pilot, who was wearing a full harness, sustained only minor injuries. He reported a potential issue with a fuel hose but other possible reasons for the loss of engine power could not be ruled out, said the inspector.

The engine of the aircraft had been serviced recently and its propeller and magnetos had been replaced just two days before the accident. On the day before the forced landing, the pilot had flown the plane to Dunkeswell in East Devon and back.

On August 27, he had planned to fly to Tatenhill Airfield in Staffordshire, and had carried out a thorough inspection of the aircraft, including a detailed check of the engine bay. He started the engine and taxied for departure. He performed pre-flight checks and tests before lining up on the runway for take-off.

The take-off progressed normally until the aircraft began to climb away, says the report, at which point the pilot reported that the engine note suddenly changed and that the engine lost power, forcing him to land heavily in the field. Later inspection by the pilot revealed a split in a fuel hose which may have led to a blockage which restricted the engine’s fuel flow and caused the subsequent loss of power.

The report concludes: “Other than the fuel hose provided by the pilot, the AAIB did not examine any other parts of the aircraft and so could not exclude other possible causes for the loss of engine power.”