We had a great discussion the past couple of days in another thread about why the engine shut down on my Bandit earlier this week. The evidence (a power-fail report from the ECU) pointed to either an intermittent battery connection or possibly a static discharge. I thought of something this afternoon that might explain what happened.

Just before the flight in which the engine shut down, I had the jet upside-down while I attached the wings. When I turned it back upright, one of the satellite receivers had fallen out. I replaced the receiver, finished my prep work, and took off. Normally, the satellite receiver that fell out sits on top of my turbine bypass. Because I've made the last few flights without the lid on the bypass (I installed a new FOD screen and wanted to make sure it didn't restrict airflow around the turbine), I attached the satellite receiver to the inside of the fuse next to the turbine. When I did, I draped the lead connecting the satellite receiver to the main receiver over one of the wing tanks.

If static electricity was generated by fuel sloshing in the tank, it had a direct conduit to the receiver through the satellite lead. In most of the flights prior to this one, the lead sat on top of the turbine bypass and never touched the tank.

We'll never know for sure, but a static discharge from the tank to the receiver through the satellite lead seems like a possibility. In the future, I will be a LOT more careful how I route my satellite leads...just in case.