What happened
A private pilot was operating a cross-country flight that had been planned for a duration of five hours. At the time of the incident, the aircraft had been in the air for three hours and thirty minutes. During the flight, the aircraft experienced a loss of engine power.
In response to the power loss, the pilot attempted to perform a forced landing onto a lake spillway. However, the pilot overshot the intended landing site, causing the aircraft to come to rest in trees approximately twenty feet above the ground.
The investigation
Investigators examined the wreckage of the aircraft to determine the cause of the engine failure. The examination revealed that there was no evidence of usable fuel remaining in the fuel tanks. Additionally, investigators found no evidence of any fuel spillage.
Records indicated that the total flight time since the last refueling was 7.6 hours. According to the manufacturer's fuel consumption data, the aircraft's endurance at a 55% power setting is approximately 7.6 hours.