Crashed plane had fuel system issues, report says

A light aircraft which crashed in a field, seriously injuring the pilot, may have been starved of fuel, a report has said.

The plane made a forced landing a few seconds after taking off from Pauncefoot Farm near Romsey, Hampshire, at about 20:00 BST on 4 July 2024.

It crashed through a drainage ditch and a hedgerow, leaving the sole occupant, a 67-year-old man, trapped in the wreckage.

The Air Accidents Investigation Branch (AAIB) said features of the plane's fuel system were not optimal and may have caused the problem.

The plane twice lost power in the short flight over a field with a private airstrip, the AAIB said.

A witness saw the plane "gently floating down" as the pilot aborted the flight, the report added.

It crashed through a bush and twisted sideways but did not catch fire, investigators said.

After being treated at the scene the pilot was taken by air ambulance to University Hospital Southampton.

Investigators said the plane had not been flown since it passed a revalidation inspection two months earlier.

The inspection included work on the fuel system, which "did not fully conform to the build manual or some of the advice in the SB [a Rotax engine safety bulletin]", the AAIB said.

It concluded: "As the demands on the fuel supply system increased for take-off, it is possible that the fuel system features in this aircraft... may have combined and resulted in a partial fuel starvation."

Following the investigation, the Light Aircraft Association has reminded aircraft owners and its own inspectors about the Rotax safety bulletin.

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