N5080Q

On January 25, 1999, about 1513 eastern standard time, a Cessna 310N, N5080Q, registered to an individual caught fire while taxiing after landing at the St. Petersburg/Clearwater Airport, Clearwater, Florida. Visual meteorological conditions prevailed at the time, and no flight plan was filed for the 14 CFR Part 91 personal flight. The airplane sustained substantial damage. The commercial-rated pilot, and two passengers reported no injuries. The flight had departed from the same airport at 1400.

After landing on runway 17L and turning onto taxiway "L," the left wing caught fire. CFR (Crash, Fire, Rescue) personnel responded and the fire was extinguished. The pilot told the FAA that after he turned onto the taxiway he heard a "bang." He attempted to turn the airplane to see if anything was on the taxiway, but he saw smoke. He stopped the airplane, shut off the engines, and all the occupants evacuated the airplane out the right door.

Examination of the airplane's left wing, after it was removed from the airframe, revealed that soot was found in the wing bay outboard of the auxiliary fuel cell, and soot was found on the stall warning switch, near an unused open terminal. Fuel stains were found on the bottom of the fuel cell bay liner and on the lower wing skin in the fuel cell area. The wing access panel, outboard of the APU plug receptacle in the engine exhaust trail area was found not sealed, as was the flap bell crank bolt access panel also located in the engine exhaust trail area. The battery positive cable was an automotive type cable. The relay end of the cable had melted. The battery ground lead had numerous broken wire strands at the battery end terminal.

The fuel pump resistor and wire bundle from the left wing were sent to the NTSB Materials Laboratory, Washington, D.C., in an attempt to determine if they were the source of ignition. According to the NTSB Materials Laboratory Factual Report, the resistor and wires were sooted and displayed heat damage "consistent with exposure to a fire." Most of the insulation on the individual wires was missing, exposing the conductors. Where the insulation was present, the insulation varied in condition from slightly sooted to completely "charred and crumbling." The inspection of individual wires with a stereo microscope revealed "...the copper conductors were heat damaged but remained intact. No indication of arcing or electrical shorting were found on the wire surfaces." No determination of an ignition source, for the ground fire, was determined.