What happened
During a three-leg IFR cross-country flight, the pilot was executing an ILS approach under IMC conditions for the final destination. Radar tracking showed the aircraft had passed the final approach fix and was roughly 3 nm from the runway threshold when the pilot reported an engine failure. Following this transmission, radar data showed the aircraft performing a 1-80-degree left turn, after which radar contact was terminated.
A witness at the scene observed the aircraft briefly gaining altitude before it banked steeply to the left and entered a nose-down dive, striking the ground just beyond a hilltop. There were no reported fatalities or injuries mentioned in the immediate sequence of events.
Findings
Investigation into the fuel system revealed that the fuel selector valve was likely positioned in the auxiliary setting at the time of the crash. This conclusion was supported by displaced O-ring seals found in the left fuel valve and results from hydraulic pressure tests on a similar valve. According to the aircraft's Owner's Manual, the fuel selector handles must be set to the left main for the left engine and right main for the right engine during all emergency operations, including landing.
Calculations regarding fuel consumption after the impact indicated that the aircraft should have had between 50 and 60 gallons of fuel remaining. No mechanical issues related to the airframe or engine performance, other than the reported failure, were identified prior to the accident.