Avoid the "buy it and fly it" trap
Rental checkouts and insurance company-mandated minimum hours of dual instruction in a new make and model are other ways to build up the safety margin when a pilot begins to fly a new machine. And even when the pilot is merely making a lateral move rather than a step up the ladder in speed, horsepower, or onboard navigation gear, it is a good idea to spend a few evenings with the appropriate handbook or manuals, and then make several flights - preferably with a flight instructor - to become comfortable with differing electronic systems, engine and fuel management procedures, and aircraft handling characteristics (see "Formal Introduction," p. 38, and "Movin' On Up," July 2002 AOPA Flight Training).
For many pilots, buying an airplane is the culmination of a dream as well as the event that propels him into an unfamiliar flying realm. Frequently, however, that must-have airplane is sitting with a for-sale sign draped over its propeller hundreds or thousands of miles away. The need to travel a great distance to procure a new aircraft, and then immediately turn around and launch on a long flight home in an unfamiliar machine, can present the buyer with narrower safety margins than he or she would accept on a more routine aerial outing. Even a diligent buyer who takes all the recommended safety precautions can be in for surprises. If you are considering stepping into the realm of aircraft ownership, carefully review the aircraft maintenance logs, insist on a thorough prepurchase inspection by a mechanic you trust, and go for a test flight. (See the AOPA publication Buying a Used Aircraft for more information.) Perhaps your former instructor or a fellow pilot familiar with the model can accompany you on the trip to pick up your new aircraft. Then let the experiences of others help you to guard against some potential pitfalls that could be waiting to take the unwary by surprise.
On April 7, 2001, a private pilot ferrying a newly purchased Cessna 150D home to Woodbine, New Jersey, from its point of purchase in Tulsa, Oklahoma, suffered minor injuries during a precautionary landing in Slanesville, West Virginia. The aircraft, which had sat idle for some time before the ferry flight, received substantial damage. The pilot had set off for home the previous day, and "at his first fuel stop, he replaced the nose landing gear tire and bearings due to dry rot and a flat spot on the tire," according to the National Transportation Safety Board report on the accident.
Shortly before the accident, the pilot had made a fuel stop in Fairmont, West Virginia. "About 50 minutes into the flight I developed a sudden power reduction from 2,500 to 1,000 rpm for about 5 to 7 seconds. Then, with no pilot input, the engine regained full power. I proceeded to check fuel selector, carb heat, mags, throttle and mixture positions. At no time did any of my inputs seem to resolve the problem. The engine would at times run rough and then lose power, regaining same at different intervals," he reported. Because his GPS showed the nearest airport to be 20 miles away, he decided to make a precautionary landing in a field. "During my rapid descent the engine ran rough at times but settled during the base and final leg to the field. So as not to be high on short final I flew low and slow through a break in the tree line that bordered the field. Flaps were fully extended, and I touched down at a relatively low speed. At 250 to 300 feet into the rollout the nosegear touched down and dug into the soft ground, causing the plane to nose in and flip on its back."
An FAA inspector's report included in the NTSB file stated that, "The carburetor bowl was drained and some sediment was found in the fuel. Inspection of the carburetor revealed that the mixture control sheath had slipped out of the retaining clamp. When the mixture control was moved, the cable flexed, but the mixture valve did not move. The mixture valve [was] in idle cutoff all the time. The cable was reattached, and the engine ran normally, reaching approximately 2,400 static rpm.... The clamp system was metal to metal; the Cessna 150 parts catalog shows that a rubber-lined Adel-type clamp is required."
The unfamiliar arrangement of a fuel-indicating system in a Beechcraft D35 Bonanza was the set-up for an April 3, 1997, fuel-starvation accident at Bartlesville Municipal Airport in Oklahoma. For the fuel indicator gauge to function properly, a switch must be set to the tank in use before the gauge is read. This "gotcha" took its toll on a pilot flying a recently purchased airplane when "during a downwind entry for the runway, the engine sputtered and lost power. A forced landing was made in a field west of the runway. During the landing flare, the left wing struck the ground, then the nose hit. An FAA inspector reported that the pilot had positioned the fuel selector to the right tank; however, he had left the fuel tank indicator [gauge] at the left tank position. The gauge was indicating half full, and the left fuel tank was about half full. The right fuel tank was empty. The pilot had recently purchased the airplane [coincidentally, also in Tulsa] and was not familiar with the fuel indicator gauge switch, which had to be positioned to the fuel tank being used in order to indicate fuel remaining in that tank," said the NTSB report. The pilot said he had planned to do some touch-and-go landings at Bartlesville, and then top off the tanks before continuing on to Kansas.
Fuel contamination triggered a tragic series of events for a pilot flying a newly purchased Mooney M20E on April 17, 1999, in Brooksville, Kentucky. After adding 45 gallons of fuel, the pilot sumped the left tank numerous times before getting a water-free sample. The right side tested water-free. "After takeoff the engine ran rough, and the pilot returned to the airfield. On the ground the engine smoothed out, and the pilot departed again, stopped once for minor maintenance, then continued on. En route, the fuel pressure dropped, and the engine began running rough again. The pilot could not maintain altitude and executed a forced landing to a road. The pilot deplaned, talked to several people, and made a telephone call. Afterwards, the pilot said he felt cold and faint, then collapsed, and could not be revived. During inspection of the airplane's fuel system, about 3 ounces of dirty water were drained from the left wing," reported the NTSB, which, after incorporating the results of an autopsy, gave the official cause of the fatality as: "Contaminated fuel which resulted in the forced landing, and a heart attack from an adrenaline rush that interacted with pre-existing coronary disease which resulted in the pilot's death."
Another cautionary tale focuses on the ritual of embarking on a demonstration flight in an aircraft considered a likely prospect for purchase. Every pilot knows that both an aircraft and its pilot must be in airworthy condition before flying. On April 25, 1998, in Downsville, New York, some of these elements were reportedly left to chance when a Piper PA-28-140 taxied out to the runway. The NTSB report on the day's disputed events is brief but action-packed: "According to the pilot, he was demonstrating high-speed taxi runs to a prospective buyer. On the last taxi run, the airplane veered off the runway into high grass, traveled down an embankment, and came to rest in some trees. The pilot reported that the airplane did not become airborne, and that the accident could have been prevented if he had taxied slower. A witness reported that the airplane did become airborne and was about 30 feet above the ground, at a high angle of attack, when the wings rocked back and forth. The airplane touched down hard and then veered off the runway. According to an FAA inspector, the pilot did not have a current medical certificate, nor did he have a current flight review. According to the airplane's maintenance records, the last annual inspection was completed four years prior to the accident." One of the two persons aboard suffered serious injuries.
Purchasing an airplane is both a dream come true and a reward for the hard work that you have done to earn the right to fly it. Taking some routine precautions, just as you would on any other flight - as well as those recommended before a new purchase - while avoiding the "buy it and fly it" trap will get your aircraft ownership experience off on the right foot.
Dan Namowitz is an aviation writer and flight instructor. A pilot for 18 years and an instructor for 12, he enjoys learning to fly "anything new and different."
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