Incident Overview
A pilot with 4,000 flight hours reported that the engine lost power while the aircraft was in cruise flight. During the subsequent descent, the pilot disengaged the autopilot, set the mixture to full rich, cycled the fuel pump, and switched the fuel selector from the left to the right fuel tank. According to the pilot, the engine momentarily regained power for a few minutes before losing power again. The pilot then elected to land on a gravel road.
Landing and Post-Landing Inspection
During the landing roll, the left main wheel separated from the aircraft, and the left main landing gear collapsed as the airplane came to rest in an upright position. Prior to the recovery of the airplane, a Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) inspector was able to start the engine using the right fuel tank. The engine ran for approximately 10 minutes with no abnormalities noted before the inspector shut it down using the mixture control.
Fuel Quantity Assessment
During the recovery process, the inspector drained approximately one gallon of fuel from the left wing fuel tank and approximately 35 gallons from the right wing fuel tank. According to the FAA-approved pilot's operating handbook, the unusable fuel quantity for both fuel tanks is one gallon.
Conclusion
The incident involved a loss of engine power in cruise, a forced landing on a gravel road, and subsequent collapse of the left main landing gear. The FAA inspector was able to start and run the engine normally using the right fuel tank after the event.