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C402 pilot reported a fire in the overhead electrical panel that extinguished on final approach to a divert field.
| Attributes | |
| ACN | 1491090 |
| Time | |
| Date | 201710 |
| Local Time Of Day | 1201-1800 |
| Place | |
| Locale Reference | ZZZ.Airport |
| State Reference | US |
| Environment | |
| Flight Conditions | IMC |
| Light | Daylight |
| Aircraft 1 | |
| Make Model Name | Cessna 402/402C/B379 Businessliner/Utiliner |
| Operating Under FAR Part | Part 135 |
| Flight Phase | Initial Approach |
| Route In Use | Vectors |
| Flight Plan | IFR |
| Component | |
| Aircraft Component | Instrument and Control Panels |
| Person 1 | |
| Function | Single Pilot |
| Qualification | Flight Crew Air Transport Pilot (ATP) |
| Events | |
| Anomaly | Aircraft Equipment Problem Critical Flight Deck / Cabin / Aircraft Event Smoke / Fire / Fumes / Odor |
Narrative:
At the time of the incident; I was at 5;000 ft on a downwind being vectored by approach. I began setting up the ILS and reading the approach plate. I rolled the captain overhead light switch on. The light did not turn on. I rolled it back thinking I had turned it the wrong way. No light came on. I rolled the co-pilot's overhead light on and began reading the approach plate. I began to smell a burning odor. I looked into the beam of the light and saw smoke coming into the cabin. I could not see where it was coming from. I performed electrical fire in-flight flow and turned off (gang-bar) the master switch row. The plane was completely dark. I looked up and saw a glow followed by fire flickering in the overhead panel by the captain's roller switch. It appeared to be getting worse.I powered the master battery on; one radio and a transponder. I declared...'fire in flight' to approach. I initiated a decent into [divert field] per their recommendation and vector. The fire burned for a minute and extinguished by itself when we were on final. I performed a short field landing and then a ground evacuation through the main cabin door onto the runway. Fire/rescue and airport operations met us immediately and the aircraft was examined by the thermal imaging camera for several minutes after.
Original NASA ASRS Text
Title: C402 pilot reported a fire in the overhead electrical panel that extinguished on final approach to a divert field.
Narrative: At the time of the incident; I was at 5;000 ft on a downwind being vectored by Approach. I began setting up the ILS and reading the approach plate. I rolled the Captain overhead light switch on. The light did not turn on. I rolled it back thinking I had turned it the wrong way. No light came on. I rolled the Co-Pilot's overhead light on and began reading the approach plate. I began to smell a burning odor. I looked into the beam of the light and saw smoke coming into the cabin. I could not see where it was coming from. I performed Electrical Fire In-flight flow and turned off (gang-bar) the master switch row. The plane was completely dark. I looked up and saw a glow followed by fire flickering in the overhead panel by the Captain's roller switch. It appeared to be getting worse.I powered the master battery on; one radio and a transponder. I declared...'fire in flight' to Approach. I initiated a decent into [divert field] per their recommendation and vector. The fire burned for a minute and extinguished by itself when we were on final. I performed a short field landing and then a ground evacuation through the main cabin door onto the runway. Fire/Rescue and Airport Operations met us immediately and the aircraft was examined by the thermal imaging camera for several minutes after.
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.