Glenn_Shaw

One type of test flying involves taking the aircraft up for its first flight after maintenance. A young CFI was given the task of test flying a single engine airplane after an engine change. He had wisely elected to climb over the airport and remain within gliding distance. When the engine quit he made a successful dead-stick landing back to the airport. My employer, a certain federal agency, sent me to investigate.
My management suggested that the pilot must have done something wrong. The CFI was not happy with my questioning. It turned out that a fuel line had come loose and the engine died of fuel starvation.
I told the pilot that if it were up to me, we would give him a medal for airmanship, but unfortunately, we
couldn’t do that!