Incident Overview
An aircraft suffered a power failure while in cruise flight en route from Wilmington, North Carolina, to Atlanta, Georgia. Following the loss of engine power, the pilot executed a gear-up landing in an open field near Sparta, Georgia. The incident occurred after the aircraft had been flown for a total of 4 hours and 43 minutes since its last refueling.
Investigation Findings
On-scene investigation revealed that the aircraft had been refueled on July 2, 1982, with 46.3 gallons of 100LL aviation gasoline. However, examination of the fuel tanks after the landing showed no fuel in the right tank and 6.8 gallons of an amber-colored fuel in the left tank. Analysis of the recovered fuel determined that it was regular leaded gasoline, not aviation fuel.
Additionally, while FAA inspectors were at the scene, a local resident reported that shortly after the mishap, the pilot purchased about 7 gallons of automotive gasoline from him and his son. The witness stated that the pilot indicated he did not intend to fly the airplane with it, but only wanted to "satisfy the man."