N1XF

On February 26, 2020, about 1645 mountain standard time, an Arion Lightning airplane, N1XF, was substantially damaged when it was involved in an accident near Jerome, Idaho. The pilot sustained minor injuries. The airplane was operated as a Title 14 Code of Federal Regulations (CFR) Part 91 personal flight.

The pilot reported that he recently purchased the airplane, during the pre-purchasing inspection the right fuel gauge was inaccurate and unreliable. After maintenance fixed the problem twice, they informed the pilot that he must recalibrate the gauge upon his return home. To make the long flight home, he used a fuel totalizer on the airplane’s instrumentation and conducted frequent fuel calculations. About 25 nautical miles from his intended destination, he calculated 6.3 gallons remaining (4.3 usable) for about 38-40 minutes of flight. Shortly thereafter, the engine sputtered and quit. He turned off the right fuel tank selector and turned on the left fuel tank fuel. In addition, he reduced the airspeed to 75 knots, turned off autopilot, and redirected to a closer airport. The engine ran again for several seconds before it sputtered again. He adjusted the fuel selectors several times, but to no avail. Unable to make it to the airport, the pilot elected to land on a nearby roadway. However, as the airplane descended, he observed fences on both sides of the road and made a left turn to a nearby field. As he turned, the left wing stalled, and the airplane impacted the ground left wing first. The aft fuselage and wings sustained substantial damage. As the pilot exited the airplane, he noted two streams of fuel exiting the damaged left wingtip.

The pilot reported to the Federal Aviation Administration that he intentionally ran the right fuel tank empty in flight because of the inoperative right fuel gauge. The pilot switched to the left fuel tank, which had about 4 gallons of fuel remaining; however, the engine would not regain power.

During recovery, little to no fuel was removed from the airplane, and the smell of fuel was not noted at the accident site. There was nothing abnormal noted with the fuel system as the airplane was disassembled and prepared for transport.