Tomorrow was to be an important day. I had almost finished my instrument training with Professional Instrument Courses (P.I.C.), an accelerated course in instrument flight, and was scheduled to be in Concord, New Hampshire, the next morning for the flight test. Tomorrow almost didn't come.
Bob, my P.I.C. instructor, and I had worked for five days honing my flying and instrument skills. Thankfully, I had the use of a friend's Piper Cherokee 180. Bob's final inspection of the aircraft indicated one deficiency — the ELT battery was outdated. There was no battery in stock at my home base, Newport State Airport in Vermont. My FBO called his supplier at the Gardner Municipal Airport in Massachusetts. We could pick one up there today, return to Newport, install it tonight, and arrive with an approved aircraft in Concord tomorrow. Not wanting to reschedule the checkride, I agreed to pick up the battery.
Bob and I spent about five hours practicing various approaches at Concord and Manchester, New Hampshire, then flew to Gardner.
We decided to top off the tanks at Gardner because we planned to leave Newport early on the following day. I handed Bob some money and asked him to attend to refueling while I walked to a rear building to pick up the battery.
When I returned, the fuel attendant handed me some change and a sales slip and asked me to move the airplane immediately so that he could quick-turn two inbound choppers.
I climbed aboard and told Bob that I was physically drained, done with IFR for the day. I wanted only to enjoy a relaxed VFR flight home to Newport.
Two aircraft were ready to depart, so I performed a full runup and took off behind the second airplane. I set up for a 25-degree heading, leveled off at 7,500 feet, and put the autopilot to work. I was feeling pretty comfortable about tomorrow's checkride. I relaxed and smoked a cigarette while we cruised on a northerly heading toward the mountains. Bob had recently quit smoking, so I popped open the semi-circular vent window to direct the smoke away from him.
As we approached Lake Sunapee, I pointed out to Bob the lake and an adjacent ski area as I flicked the remnant of my cigarette out the small vent window.
As I flipped it out, I almost screamed. The large and heavy left wing tank fuel cap sat on the wing, and a stream of fuel was being sucked from the opening. It was mixing with the rushing air about five inches above the wing and leaving a wide and explosive vapor trail behind the airplane.
I held my breath, waiting for the explosion. Somehow, the lit cigarette did not ignite the vapors and blow us into the otherwise clear blue sky.
I couldn't believe that the cap had stayed perched on the wing (the metal halyard had broken long ago). The left tank now registered about half, so we had vented a lot of fuel.
If I lost the cap, I would have to reschedule tomorrow's checkride. My approach to Newport was long and gradual. I taxied to a stop, shut down, and replaced the cap, which hadn't moved at all.
Later I reflected on how an investigation never could have revealed the real cause of the deadly accident that had almost happened. Would the manufacturer or a mechanic have been blamed for my two stupid mistakes?
Never again would I neglect to preflight the aircraft that I would fly. Never again would I toss anything outside an aircraft in flight.
Tomorrow came and I flew to Concord for my checkride, with a renewed respect for every item on every checklist. A simple walkaround would have revealed the gas cap sitting on the wing. A close call with an accident could have been prevented at no real cost in money or time.
A more alert, cautious, and humbled IFR pilot returned to Newport on the following day.
John W. Stevens, AOPA 1719405, of Newport, Vermont, holds a private pilot certificate and an instrument rating. He has accumulated 750 hours of flight time in airplanes and gliders in 38 years of flying.
"Never Again" is presented to enhance safety by providing a forum for pilots to learn from the experiences of others. Manuscripts should be typewritten, double spaced, and sent to: Editor, AOPA Pilot, 421 Aviation Way, Frederick, Maryland 21701.
Related Articles
