Accident Sequence
The airplane was cruising at 9,000 feet when, approximately two hours into the flight, the pilot switched the fuel selector from the right tip tank to the right main. About three to five minutes later, the engine stopped and the propeller began windmilling. The pilot attempted to restart the engine without success. Air traffic control was vectoring the flight to an airport, but the pilot reported being unable to maintain altitude and decided to land in an open field. During the landing rollout, one of the airplane's wings separated from the fuselage.
Post-Accident Engine Test Run
On March 19, 1999, an engine test run was conducted under FAA supervision. Before starting the engine, the fuel screen was removed from the fuel servo; fuel was present with minimal sediment and no water. Fuel was also found in the flow divider. The mixture control continuity was confirmed, with free travel from stop to stop. The throttle control was limited in travel from idle to half throttle because the cockpit control was bent.
During the start-up, the engine emitted black smoke and ran roughly. When the mixture control was leaned to approximately half travel, the black smoke stopped and the engine ran smoothly. At idle, the oil pressure gauge indicated minimum oil pressure. The engine was shut down using the mixture control and restarted several times with the same results. When the throttle was advanced without first leaning the mixture, the engine would quit. When the mixture was moved from lean to full rich while the engine was running, the engine would run rough, emit black smoke, and then die within several seconds.
Fuel Servo Flow Test
On June 14, 1999, the Precision Fuel Servo Injector, model RSA-10ED1, serial number 8791, was flow tested under the supervision of the NTSB investigator-in-charge. The flow test revealed that the servo was running rich at the idle and off-idle settings but was within specifications at higher rpm settings.
The fuel servo injector had been received at the NTSB Miami office via FedEx Pak on April 1, 1999, and remained in the envelope until flow tests were conducted. It was wrapped in a single piece of plastic with no padding. After removal, the only external damage observed was a bent mixture control lever, jammed in the full rich position. The FAA inspector stated the mixture lever was not damaged when he turned the unit over for shipping. It was concluded that the mixture arm was damaged after leaving the FAA office in Atlanta and before reaching the NTSB office in Miami, likely due to shipping in an unprotected container. However, the damaged mixture control lever did not affect the fuel servo flow test results.