Incident Summary
During a night pleasure flight, the aircraft experienced an alternator failure, causing a loss of electrical power. The pilot decided to make an immediate landing at the airport he was overflying rather than diverting to another field that had operating runway lights.
Sequence of Events
The airport the pilot was over had a pilot-controlled lighting system. However, the pilot reported that he was unable to activate the lights. In the darkness, the pilot misidentified a taxiway that was under construction as the runway. After touchdown, the aircraft collided with a dirt mound and nosed over.
Outcome
The aircraft sustained damage from the collision and nose-over. The pilot's decision to land at the airport without functioning runway lights and the misidentification of a taxiway under construction as the runway were the key events leading to the accident.