Incident Overview
A night cross-country freight flight encountered a left engine failure. A pilot witness reported hearing the pilot on frequency 122.85 state that his left engine had failed. A second pilot witness heard the pilot transmit that the engine came back on line when he switched to the auxiliary fuel tank. Despite the restored power, the pilot decided to proceed with a precautionary landing prior to Dallas.
Flight and Communications
The pilot communicated with air traffic control (ATC), stating he would contact them after landing and inform them of the airport name. The destination airport featured pilot-controlled lighting on frequency 122.80, which included a Visual Approach Slope Indicator (VASI) system.
Aircraft Examination
Post-accident examination of the airplane revealed the landing gear was down and flaps were extended. The left propeller was set to low pitch but was not feathered, while the right engine throttle was found at idle. The fuel selector for the right engine was positioned on the main tank, and the left engine selector was on the auxiliary tank. No fuel was detected in the left wing tanks.
Previous Fuel Report
A second pilot witness, who flew the same airplane the night before, reported to dispatch upon landing that fuel had siphoned from the left main tank during that flight. Postcrash inspection of the left wing main fuel port collar showed deformations in the collar. The pilot had completed his Part 135 check ride three days prior to the incident.