Skylane 182/RG Turbo Skylane/RG
Flight Crew Multiengine; Flight Crew Commercial; Flight Crew Instrument
Flight Crew Last 90 Days 51; Flight Crew Total 403.9; Flight Crew Type 10.9
Workload; Troubleshooting; Confusion; Situational Awareness
Aircraft Equipment Problem Less Severe; Aircraft Equipment Problem Critical; Flight Deck / Cabin / Aircraft Event Smoke / Fire / Fumes / Odor; Ground Event / Encounter Other / Unknown
Aircraft Aircraft Damaged; Flight Crew Took Evasive Action; General Declared Emergency; General Evacuated; General Maintenance Action
Aircraft
I was getting ready to start the first flight of the day for a small skydiving business. I did a fairly quick preflight inspection of the airplane; seeing that the group of jumpers was close to being ready to go; and found no abnormalities. Once everyone was loaded up; there were five occupants in the airplane; including myself as the pilot; I ran through the normal engine start procedure; and cranked the engine. The engine did not start; and I figured it was normal; since it was the first start of the day. I pumped the throttle a couple of times and attempted a second startup. As I was cranking the engine; I noticed smoke coming from the cowling.As soon as I pointed out the smoke; the Jump Instructor immediately began evacuating the aircraft. While this was occurring; I remembered my training and continued to crank the engine with the throttle full open and the mixture at idle cut-off. The smoke was still there; and as the last occupant of the aircraft was leaving; I placed the fuel selector to 'OFF' and got out of the plane as quickly as I could. Shortly after I evacuated the airplane; a fire ignited just below the engine. The Jump Instructor got back into the cockpit and tried to start the engine once more (my guess is to try and blow out the fire.) His attempt was unsuccessful; and he turned off the Ignition and Master Switch before getting out. We quickly grabbed as many fire extinguishers as we could find; and attempted to douse the fire while an onlooker called 911. The smoke was getting thicker; and it soon filled the cabin. The extinguishers would only put out the fire temporarily; and it kept re-lighting. Local police arrived with additional fire extinguishers; and we continued to try and put the fire out while waiting for the volunteer firefighters to arrive with trucks. By the time the trucks arrived; the fire itself was out; and the firefighters continued to spray the engine. Once the firefighters finished spraying the engine; we drained the remaining fuel from the airplane.Nobody was injured in this incident; and the fire damage to the aircraft was limited to the engine and part of the instrument panel; along with ash in the cabin. The Jump Instructor (also the owner of the plane) has contacted his insurance company; and we do not know the monetary amount of damage there is. The cause of this incident is also unknown; but my best guess is the problem originated in the carburetor; since the fire itself seemed to be concentrated in that area. We noticed what was most likely fuel leaking from the bottom of the cowling while the fire was burning. I do not know why fuel was continuing to flow into the carburetor even though I placed the fuel selector to off and the mixture to idle cut-off. There may have been a problem with the fuel selector which contributed to the incident. I spoke with my boss (we have a contract with the skydiving business to provide pilots); who had flown the same aircraft the previous day; and he informed me that the engine did not want to start at first; and had backfired on him that day. I have now heard multiple stories of older Cessnas catching fire in a similar way. I strongly believe that I did not catch any leaks or abnormalities in the engine section during my preflight; but there is always the possibility that I overlooked something. This was my first major aircraft incident as PIC in my flying career; and I am very glad that I was able to keep calm and apply my training during the situation and that everyone walked away just fine.
A C182 engine caught fire during engine start forcing the pilot and four sky divers to evacuate. Hand fire extinguishers quelled the fire before fire fighters arrived but the ignited fuel's source is unknown.