What happened
At approximately 12:39 PDT, while operating on an IFR cross-country flight at 14,000 feet, the aircraft encountered icing conditions. Over the following 1.4 hours, the pilot performed incremental altitude changes to avoid the icing, climbing to 17,000 feet and later descending to 11,000 feet.
At approximately 14:11 PDT, the pilot indicated that the engine had lost power and reported that the propeller was windmilling. At the time of the power loss, the aircraft was located roughly 20 to 30 miles from its destination. The pilot was unable to glide the aircraft to an airport. During an attempt at an emergency landing, the left wing struck a tree, causing the aircraft to crash.
The investigation
Investigators examined the fuel system and found that the fuel selector was positioned to feed from the right tank. However, there was no fuel remaining in the right tank, and only approximately one quart of fuel was located in the right auxiliary tank. While the left tanks had ruptured and were empty, investigators found no evidence of fuel spilling.