Accident Overview
About 45 minutes after takeoff, while cruising at 8,500 feet, the pilot attempted to reposition the fuel selector to another tank but found it would not move. He decided to land as soon as possible to have the problem corrected. While on short final to land, the engine lost power. Attempts to restart the engine were unsuccessful. About 400 yards from the runway, the airplane's left wing struck a tree, and the airplane crashed in a swamp.
Pilot Interview
An FAA investigator interviewed the pilot and asked when he last moved the fuel selector valve. The pilot stated that he last moved it on the day before the flight and it operated normally at that time. The fuel selector was not moved before he departed for the accident flight. For this flight, he had used an abbreviated checklist.
Checklist and Flight Manual
Item 12 in the airplane's Flight Manual under the heading of starting procedures stated: "...Activate the [fuel] selector valve several times by rotating the handle from tank to tank to ensure that the selector valve is free." The abbreviated checklist that the pilot used did not contain item 12.
Fuel Selector Examination
Examination of the airplane's fuel selector revealed that the selector valve was stuck in the left fuel tank position due to rust from the fuel/drain spring. The rust had worked its way in between the valve seat, causing the valve to be stuck in place.
Fuel Quantity
The left fuel tank had been breached during the accident sequence; the amount of fuel in the tank at the time of the accident was not verified.