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An older model M20 developed a fuel leak in the fuel pressure sense line behind the copilot side instrument panel; so the pilot declared an emergency returned to the airport he had just departed.
| Attributes | |
| ACN | 1170331 |
| Time | |
| Date | 201405 |
| Local Time Of Day | 1801-2400 |
| Place | |
| Locale Reference | ZZZ.Airport |
| State Reference | US |
| Environment | |
| Flight Conditions | VMC |
| Light | Daylight |
| Aircraft 1 | |
| Make Model Name | Mooney Aircraft Undifferentiated or Other Model |
| Operating Under FAR Part | Part 91 |
| Flight Phase | Climb |
| Route In Use | Direct |
| Flight Plan | None |
| Component | |
| Aircraft Component | Fuel Line Fittings & Connectors |
| Person 1 | |
| Function | Pilot Flying Single Pilot |
| Qualification | Flight Crew Private Flight Crew Instrument |
| Experience | Flight Crew Last 90 Days 18 Flight Crew Total 902 Flight Crew Type 716 |
| Events | |
| Anomaly | ATC Issue All Types Aircraft Equipment Problem Critical Deviation - Procedural Published Material / Policy |
Narrative:
Climbing through 2;000 ft I smelled a strong solvent odor in cockpit. Fuel was dripping quickly from behind copilot panel onto floor (and copilot's feet). Immediately turned back toward my departure airport; contacted tower (had been handed off from tower to TRACON approach - switched back to tower without contacting TRACON); and informed them that we were returning due to a fuel leak. Declared emergency and prepared our fire extinguisher in case fuel ignited. Landed uneventfully; rolled off runway; and shut everything down. Fuel leak was due to a hole in the fuel line to the fuel pressure gauge. This pressurized fuel line passes through the firewall to the gauge in the panel. A much safer design would be to mount a transducer on the engine side of the firewall - apparently that is done on later models of the same plane. We will investigate retrofitting that type of gauge.
Original NASA ASRS Text
Title: An older model M20 developed a fuel leak in the fuel pressure sense line behind the copilot side instrument panel; so the pilot declared an emergency returned to the airport he had just departed.
Narrative: Climbing through 2;000 FT I smelled a strong solvent odor in cockpit. Fuel was dripping quickly from behind copilot panel onto floor (and copilot's feet). Immediately turned back toward my departure airport; contacted Tower (had been handed off from Tower to TRACON Approach - switched back to Tower without contacting TRACON); and informed them that we were returning due to a fuel leak. Declared emergency and prepared our fire extinguisher in case fuel ignited. Landed uneventfully; rolled off runway; and shut everything down. Fuel leak was due to a hole in the fuel line to the fuel pressure gauge. This pressurized fuel line passes through the firewall to the gauge in the panel. A much safer design would be to mount a transducer on the engine side of the firewall - apparently that is done on later models of the same plane. We will investigate retrofitting that type of gauge.
Data retrieved from NASA's ASRS site 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.