PA-32 pilot reported an engine fire resulted from a backfire while attempting an engine start.

Attributes
ACN	1389013
Time
Date	201609
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	PA-32 Cherokee Six/Lance/Saratoga/6X
Operating Under FAR Part	Part 91
Flight Phase	Parked
Flight Plan	VFR
Component
Aircraft Component	Engine
Person 1
Function	Single Pilot
Qualification	Flight Crew Private
Experience	Flight Crew Last 90 Days 18 Flight Crew Total 81 Flight Crew Type 17
Events
Anomaly	Aircraft Equipment Problem Critical Flight Deck / Cabin / Aircraft Event Smoke / Fire / Fumes / Odor

Narrative:

Upon start-up of the engine; a backfire occurred that ignited the air filter causing a fire to break out in the upper left quadrant of the engine. A fire truck was dispatched by the nearby terminal and it was promptly extinguished. No injuries occurred. The cause of the backfire is unknown.

Original NASA ASRS Text

Title: PA-32 pilot reported an engine fire resulted from a backfire while attempting an engine start.

Narrative: Upon start-up of the engine; a backfire occurred that ignited the air filter causing a fire to break out in the upper left quadrant of the engine. A fire truck was dispatched by the nearby terminal and it was promptly extinguished. No injuries occurred. The cause of the backfire is unknown.

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.