N9293H

On August 26, 1995, about 1550 eastern daylight time, a Cessna 172M, N9293H, was destroyed while taxiing to the parking ramp, after landing, at the Perry Airport, Williamson, New York. The private pilot and one passenger were not injured. Visual meteorological conditions prevailed, and no flight plan had been filed for the local flight. The personal flight was being conducted under 14 CFR Part 91.

The airplane had landed on runway 28, and the pilot was taxiing to the ramp, when the engine lost total power. According to the pilot's statement on the NTSB Form 6120.1/2:

...after putting power back to 1000 RPM from idle...the airplane's engine stalled. I...attempted to restart the engine. After approximately 30 seconds of cranking on and off, with power set at 1/2 inch in, there was a loud backfire and a vapor-like smoke around the engine...flames surrounded the entire engine cowling. My passenger and myself imediatly exited the aircraft, and I grabbed the fire extinguisher...I tried to extinguish the fire but it grew stronger...I ran to the office...and found another extinguisher...I again tried to extinguish the flames but was unable to.

The FAA examined the engine and carburetor, in an effort to determine the origin of the fire. The examination reveled, "that raw fuel entered the engine compartment and ignited." Due to fire damage, the origin of the fuel entering the engine compartment was not determined.