ALDINGER ALBERT JOHN COZY Mark III

Full Narrative

On August 3, 2023, about 1145 Pacific daylight time, an experimental amateur-built Cozy, N964AL, was substantially damaged when it was involved in an accident near McDermitt, Oregon. The pilot sustained minor injuries. The airplane was operated as a Title 14 Code of Federal Regulations Part 91 personal flight.

The pilot reported that he recently purchased the airplane and was in the process of relocating the airplane. He had two prior flights in the accident airplane. On the day of the accident flight, he departed from Shelton, Washington, with the intended destination of Battle Mountain, Nevada. During the flight he had no way to monitor the fuel burn rate other than the fuel sight gauges, which he couldn't see due to objects blocking his view. During the flight, he leaned the fuel to slightly lean of peak, routinely switched fuel tanks, and believed he had plenty of fuel for the flight. After flying for about 2 hours and 20 minutes at an altitude of about 9,500 ft mean sea level (msl), the airplane sustained a complete loss of engine power. Unable to maintain altitude, the pilot elected to conduct an off-airport landing to a dirt road. During the landing roll, the airplane encountered uneven terrain, nosed over, and came to rest inverted.

Postaccident examination of the airplane identified crushing of the forward fuselage. Flight control continuity was established from all primary flight control surfaces to the cockpit controls.

Wreckage recovery personnel reported that they did not observe any fuel residue in the wreckage, detect any odor of fuel, or recover any fuel. They did not observe any noticeable discoloration of the surrounding vegetation.
Examination of the recovered airframe and engine revealed no preaccident mechanical malfunctions or failures with the airplane that would have precluded normal operation. No visible damage was observed to the left and right fuel tanks and no fuel or liquid was observed in the fuel tanks. A visual inspection of the fuel system was conducted, and continuity was established from the main fuel tanks to the carburetor. A small amount of fuel was observed in the airframe fuel strainer. The carburetor bowl was void of fuel.
A functional engine test was conducted. An external fuel tank was attached to the right-wing fuel inlet line. During an initial attempt to start the engine, the airplane’s battery did not have a sufficient charge to crank the engine. An external power source was attached to the battery and the engine started. Due to the damage to the forward fuselage, the throttle was not advanced to the full forward position. However, the engine did run at various power settings.