Background
On June 12, 2017, about 2255 eastern daylight time, a Cessna P206A, N206TF, was substantially damaged during a forced landing while on approach to Eagles Nest Airport (31E), West Creek, New Jersey. The commercial pilot sustained minor injuries. The airplane was operated under 14 Code of Federal Regulations Part 91 as a post-maintenance flight. Visual meteorological conditions prevailed, and a visual flight rules flight plan was filed but not activated.
Preflight and First Leg
Two days earlier, four repaired cylinders were installed on the airplane's engine, requiring break-in. The pilot spoke with the mechanic and received break-in procedures, including operating the engine at full rich and monitoring cylinder head temperature. He was also advised to check the fuselage belly for fresh oil. The pilot reported filling both fuel tanks to their usable capacity of 31.5 gallons each. He then flew an uneventful 1-hour flight from 31E to Danbury Municipal Airport (DXR), Danbury, Connecticut. During that leg, the fuel selector was on the right tank, the mixture at full rich, and the engine at 24 inches manifold pressure and 2,400 rpm. No engine discrepancies were noted, and no fuel was purchased at DXR.
Return Flight and Forced Landing
Before departing DXR for the return flight, the pilot performed a "quick preflight inspection." Although the airplane had a dipstick to check fuel quantity, he did not use it. The airplane departed with the fuel selector on the left tank, mixture full rich, and climbed at full power to 7,500 ft mean sea level. The pilot maintained 24 inches manifold pressure and 2,400 rpm throughout the flight, periodically scanning engine gauges. While on final approach to runway 14, he realized the "sight picture" was incorrect and performed a go-around. He climbed to between 1,000 and 1,200 ft, then turned onto the crosswind and downwind legs. On the downwind leg, between 1,200 and 1,500 ft and before midfield, with the auxiliary fuel pump on, the engine sputtered and quit, and the propeller stopped. The pilot attempted to restart by moving the fuel selector to the right tank, verifying the mixture was full rich, and advancing the throttle, but the engine did not restart. He turned onto the base leg and flew toward the runway at best glide speed (80 knots). The airplane impacted trees then the ground about 1/4 nautical mile before the runway and came to rest inverted. The fuel selector was not moved before exiting the airplane.
Postaccident Examination
A Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) inspector examined the airplane. The fuel selector was positioned to the left fuel tank. About 2.5 gallons of fuel were drained from the left tank, which was breached in two locations; about 6 ounces of fuel were drained from the un-breached right tank. The ground beneath the left wing smelled of fuel, while the ground beneath the right tank did not, and no fuel blight to vegetation was noted there. No fuel stains were found aft of either fuel cap. One propeller blade was slightly bent.
After recovery, the same inspector examined the airplane. Fuel was present at the inlet and outlet of the auxiliary fuel pump, but no fuel was present at the inlet or outlet of the engine-driven fuel pump or at the flow divider/manifold valve. With battery power and a fuel supply, the auxiliary fuel pump provided fuel to the engine-driven pump's inlet and outlet; this was repeated with the fuel selector on left and right positions. No issues with the aircraft's fuel system were reported. The propeller was rotated by hand; with a spark plug removed from each cylinder, suction and compression were noted. The magnetos produced spark at all spark plugs. A temporary fuel supply was plumbed in, and the engine started and operated for about 12 seconds; safety concerns prevented a longer run or high-power operation. No discrepancies were noted during the engine run.