Accident Overview
During a cross-country flight in his own helicopter, the pilot experienced a fuel exhaustion event. The pilot had a fixed-wing rating but was a student pilot in helicopters, with only 40 hours of rotorcraft experience. Following the fuel exhaustion, the pilot attempted an auto-rotative landing. During this landing, the helicopter struck trees.
Pilot Information
The pilot held a fixed-wing aircraft rating and was a student helicopter pilot. His total rotorcraft flight time was 40 hours. He was operating the helicopter, which he owned.
Fuel System and Decision Making
The pilot reported that the fuel quantity system was functioning correctly. However, he had an incorrect belief that the helicopter was equipped with a larger fuel tank than it actually had. Upon discovering that he was about to run out of fuel, he tried to divert to the nearest airport. The helicopter ran out of fuel approximately three miles from the airport.
Landing Sequence
Fuel exhaustion forced the pilot to perform an auto-rotative landing. During this maneuver, the helicopter collided with trees.