The Cessna 207 aircraft (C207) was engaged on a sight-seeing
flight from Cradle Mountain, to Lake St. Clair and return. On board
were the pilot and 4 passengers. The flight departed Cradle
Mountain at approximately 1310 ESuT and tracked direct to Lake St
Clair at 7000 ft due to turbulence. The aircraft then returned to
Cradle Mountain.
At approximately 1404, as the aircraft was approaching the
airfield, the pilot configured the aircraft for a straight in
approach to strip 02. The pilot had selected two stages of flap,
and had reduced power to approximately 19 inches of manifold
pressure. He reported that at approximately half a mile from the
airfield the engine stopped without any prior warning. After
completing trouble checks, the pilot became aware that the aircraft
would not reach the airfield. He then manoeuvred the aircraft
towards an open area on his right while broadcasting a MAYDAY call.
Melbourne air traffic control acknowledged this call. The pilot
then completed additional trouble checks and changed the fuel tank
selection, but the engine failed to respond.
The aircraft touched down heavily on the main wheels and slid
approximately 40 metres before coming to a stop. During the
touchdown and subsequent ground slide, the nose wheel detached from
the aircraft, the propeller was damaged and the right wing was
partially separated from the airframe. After the aircraft stopped
the pilot checked the passengers and discovered that two of them
had suffered serious injuries. As fuel was leaking from the damaged
right wing, the pilot and uninjured passenger assisted the injured
passengers from the aircraft. The pilot was then able to make his
way to the airstrip to raise the alarm. The Australian Transport
Safety Bureau did not attend the site but conducted the
investigation relying upon information provided by the pilot, the
operator, and the Bureau of Meteorology.
The pilot reported that he had completed a daily inspection of
the aircraft earlier in the morning. That inspection included
assessing the fuel quantity on board the aircraft and completing a
fuel drain and water check. Both of these checks did not reveal any
problem with the fuel. The pilot estimated that there was
approximately 185 litres of fuel on board the aircraft, 90 litres
in the right tank and 95 litres in the left tank. The aircraft had
last been refuelled the day previously from drum stock. The
aircraft had completed two flights since that refuelling with no
problems being reported. The engineers that recovered the aircraft
reported that there was approximately 30 litres of fuel in the left
tank and approximately 100 litres of fuel in the right tank.
The C207 aircraft has a fuel selector in the cockpit that allows
the pilot to supply fuel to the engine from either the right tank
or the left tank, but not from both tanks simultaneously. The pilot
reported that he conducted the flight with the fuel selector
switched to the left tank. He also reported that he did not move
the selector during the flight and only moved it to the right tank
as part of his trouble checks when the engine failed.
The pilot reported that he did not complete flight or fuel plans
for the flight, but operated on previous knowledge from other
flights. A post occurrence analysis of the weather indicated that
the winds at 7000 feet were as forecast. Post flight analysis of
the flight revealed that the aircraft would have required 57 litres
of fuel to complete the flight, which included allowances for taxi
and climb.
The engine was sent by the owner to an engine overhaul facility
for testing. The ATSB did not attend the testing of the engine. The
engine was fitted to the test cell in the condition as removed from
the aircraft. The engine was started and test run in accordance
with the engine manufacturer's overhaul manual. The engine ran
normally and all temperature and pressure limits were within normal
ranges.
The investigation was unable to determine why the engine failed
to operate normally in the latter stages of the flight.