A PA-32 engine faltered after the student pilot selected the opposite tip tank which apparently had ...

Attributes
ACN	1116474
Time
Date	201307
Local Time Of Day	0601-1200
Place
Locale Reference	ZZZ.Airport
State Reference	US
Environment
Flight Conditions	VMC
Light	Daylight
Aircraft 1
Make Model Name	PA-32 Cherokee Six/Lance/Saratoga/6X
Operating Under FAR Part	Part 91
Flight Phase	Takeoff
Route In Use	Visual Approach
Flight Plan	None
Component
Aircraft Component	Fuel Distribution System
Person 1
Function	Pilot Not Flying Instructor
Qualification	Flight Crew Flight Instructor Flight Crew Multiengine Flight Crew Instrument Flight Crew Commercial
Experience	Flight Crew Last 90 Days 178.7 Flight Crew Total 995.2 Flight Crew Type 24.7
Events
Anomaly	Aircraft Equipment Problem Critical Deviation - Procedural Published Material / Policy Inflight Event / Encounter Fuel Issue

Narrative:

After topping off all 4 tanks in the cherokee six I departed the airport with a private pilot that wanted to get checked out in the cherokee six. We did about 1 hour of maneuvers in the practice area; mostly on the left tip tank; then returned to the airport for touch and go's. During the pre-landing checklist the pilot switched tanks to the right tip tank. He had remembered that the poh recommended using the tip tanks first. The poh also recommends that fullest main or tip tank be selected for landing. The poh also recommends that the fullest main tank be used for takeoff.after climbing out from runway 17L after the first touch and go; during a turn to left cross-wind the engine began to sputter. It never quit. I immediately took the controls; switched tanks to the right main; leveled the wings and looked for a place to land. The engine returned to normal operation in about 3 or 4 seconds. I called the tower and informed them that we were having engine trouble and wanted to return to land on runway 35R. We were cleared to land on 35R and did so without incident. Maintenance did not find any issues with the aircraft. We're not sure what the issue was.

Original NASA ASRS Text

Title: A PA-32 engine faltered after the student pilot selected the opposite tip tank which apparently had sufficient fuel and being in the landing pattern; the instructor made a full stop landing.

Narrative: After topping off all 4 tanks in the Cherokee Six I departed the airport with a private pilot that wanted to get checked out in the Cherokee Six. We did about 1 hour of maneuvers in the practice area; mostly on the left tip tank; then returned to the airport for touch and go's. During the Pre-Landing checklist the pilot switched tanks to the right tip tank. He had remembered that the POH recommended using the tip tanks first. The POH also recommends that fullest main or tip tank be selected for landing. The POH also recommends that the fullest main tank be used for takeoff.After climbing out from Runway 17L after the first touch and go; during a turn to left cross-wind the engine began to sputter. It never quit. I immediately took the controls; switched tanks to the right main; leveled the wings and looked for a place to land. The engine returned to normal operation in about 3 or 4 seconds. I called the Tower and informed them that we were having engine trouble and wanted to return to land on Runway 35R. We were cleared to land on 35R and did so without incident. Maintenance did not find any issues with the aircraft. We're not sure what the issue was.

Data retrieved from NASA's ASRS site as of July 2013 and automatically converted to unabbreviated mixed upper/lowercase text. This report is for informational purposes with no guarantee of accuracy. See NASA's ASRS site for official report.