Bombardier INC BD-700-2A12 incident near West Palm Beach, Florida, April 3, 2022
On April 3, 2022 at about 1:06 pm local time, a 2021 Bombardier INC BD-700-2A12, registered N63RP, was involved in an incident during initial climb near West Palm Beach, Florida (Palm Beach International airport). It was a personal flight under charter and air-taxi rules (Part 135). The NTSB record does not give the injuries. The weather was conditions the NTSB did not record.
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The NTSB's probable cause their words, unchanged
An in-flight engine fire resulted from a fuel leak from fuel nozzle No. 16 pigtail-to-fuel manifold b-nut connection that contacted hot engine parts and ignited. Contributing to the manifold fuel leak was the misalignment between fuel manifold female ferrule and fuel nozzle male bullnose sealing surfaces coupled with distress of the ferrule sealing surface.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made October 4, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- April 3, 2022 · about 1:06 pm local time
- Place
- West Palm Beach, Florida · Palm Beach International · map
- Type
- Incident
- Injuries
- The NTSB record does not give the injuries.
- Weather
- conditions the NTSB did not record
- Aircraft
- Bombardier INC BD-700-2A12, built 2021
- Registration
- N63RP · registry record · serial 70079
- Damage
- Not recorded
- Flight
- Personal flight · charter and air-taxi rules (Part 135)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
Post-event inspection of a GE Aviation Passport 20-19BB1A turbofan engine found light thermal distress on the outside of the engine core compartment near the top of the engine from the 10:00 to 11:00 o’clock position, aft looking forward, and localized discoloration on the inside of the core cowls in the general location of fuel nozzle No. 16 location consistent with an undercowl engine fire. This corroborates the pilot’s report of an in-flight engine fire during takeoff climb. The fuel nozzle No. 16 location appeared shiny, lacked the sooting that neighboring fuel nozzle pigtail-to-fuel manifold b-nut connections exhibited; therefore, it was considered a possible fuel leak location. The engine was removed and sent to GE for evaluation; a fuel system leak check was performed but the source/location of the fuel leak could not be identified. The fuel pressure and nitrogen check pressure used during the leak tests were well below the fuel pressure the engine experienced during the event and was determined to be insufficient to replicate the leak. A torque check of all the fuel manifold b-nut connections found four locations, all located on the left fuel manifold, which had very low torque values, less than 200 inch-pounds, when compared to the other b-nut connection locations and the required installation torque of 285 inch-pounds nominal. One of the four low torque locations was fuel nozzle No. 16 that was identified as a possible leak source during the initial examination. Detailed analysis of the fuel nozzle No. 16 pigtail-to-fuel manifold b-nut connection revealed evidence of galling and intermediate contact marks consistent with and indicative of misalignment and relative movement within the connection; none of the other low torque b-nut connection locations exhibited this type of surface distress. Since the post-event fuel system leak checks performed by GE could not induce a fuel leak, the exact location/source of the fuel leak could not be determined by testing and observations. However, the combination of low torque, misalignment between fuel nozzle No. 16 pigtail-to-fuel manifold b-nut connection, and sealing surface distress created the conditions by which there was insufficient sealing allowing fuel to leak during high engine power and high fuel pressures. No other fuel nozzle locations had this combination of factors that would have allowed a fuel leak.
The complete narrative as the NTSB published it. The NTSB's docket holds the report as a PDF and any photographs, statements and other documents from the investigation.
The factual record from the NTSB's investigation tables, in plain English
What happened, in order
- Fire/smoke (non-impact) during initial climb defining event
- Engine shutdown during initial climb
- Loss of engine power (partial) during initial climb
The NTSB's findings
- Aircraft › Aircraft power plant › Engine fuel and control › Fuel distribution › Design
- Personnel issues › Task performance › Maintenance › Installation › Maintenance personnel
The aircraft
- Last inspection: inspection type not recorded
- Seats: 22
- Landing gear: retractable
- Engine 1: Ge Passport 20-1 (turbofan); 211 hours total
- Engine 2: Ge Passport 20-1 (turbofan); 211 hours total
- Operator: Mirasol Sky LLC
The flight
- Departed from: PBI West Palm Beach FL
- Destination: TEB Teterboro Airport NJ
- Flight plan: IFR
- A second pilot was aboard
Weather at the time
- Light: not reported
- Temperature: 0°F (-18°C), dew point 0°F (-18°C)
About this page
Everything above comes from the NTSB's public accident database: the narrative, probable cause and findings are the NTSB's own words, and the coded tables behind its report (pilot, aircraft, flight, weather, injuries, sequence of events) are written out in plain English. Pilots' ages, home towns and medical details are left out on purpose. The docket at the NTSB holds the report as a PDF and the investigation's photographs and documents. This site never names pilots, passengers or anyone else involved. A preliminary report describes what is known soon after the event and can change; the final report, with the probable cause, usually follows one to two years later and this page is refreshed when it does. Case number ENG22LA020.