AN AIRPLANE burst into flames after it crashed on an Irish runway after it took off by itself, an Air Accident Investigation Unit report has found.
The aircraft was due to take off from a private airfield at Mullinahone Co Tipperary to Sligo Airport on July 5 this year.
Shortly after 10am, the pilot, who is a member of the British Light Aircraft Association, took the aircraft out of its hangar to hand-start the engine by swinging the propeller.
The pilot said in the accident report to the AAIU he was in 'somewhat of a hurry' to get airbourne and had set the throttle to a 'higher than the usual setting' and set the ignition switch to 'on.'
These factors and also that the wheels had not been chocked to prevent accidental movement had contributed to the accident, he said.
When the engine started the plane moved 70 metres across the airfield by itself and although the pilot pursued the plane on foot, it collided with a ditch and a hedge.
The aircraft then overturned onto an electric fence, and the pilot surmised a fuel leak may have been ignited by the electric fence.
The aircraft was destroyed, but no one was injured.
The AAIU said: "Although hand swinging is permitted under the civil aviation regulations, it should only be undertaken when no other alternatives exist to start the aircraft engine and all necessary precautions have been taken to mitigate the hazards."
However the investigative body welcomed the assistance provided by the pilot following this accident and his willingness to have the occurrence highlighted for safety purposes.
