What happened
The aircraft executed a hard landing off the runway at an airport during a forced landing event. According to the pilot, the aircraft had recently completed its annual inspection, during which a broken fuel selector valve handle was identified. A replacement valve was ordered, and a temporary handle was installed in the interim.
During a flight check on May 3, the engine quit, but the pilot successfully landed at an airport. The pilot contacted his mechanic to bring fuel, and they added five gallons to the right tank. Persuaded by the mechanic to wait before ferrying the aircraft, the pilot returned the next day with ten additional gallons of fuel.
Unsure which tank the selector was aligned with, the pilot added five gallons to each tank. This resulted in a total of ten gallons in the right tank and five gallons in the left. After checking the engine, the pilot took off. Three minutes later, the engine quit again. The pilot managed to land adjacent to the runway, where the landing gear collapsed.
The investigation
The investigation revealed that the fuel selector was positioned on the left tank. Analysis of the fuel quantities showed that one and a half gallons in each tank was unusable. Consequently, there was only a trace amount of fuel remaining in the left tank and approximately seven gallons in the right tank.
Findings
The primary contributing factor was the misalignment of the fuel selector valve due to the temporary handle installation. The pilot's failure to verify the selector position before adding fuel led to an insufficient fuel supply in the selected tank, resulting in fuel exhaustion. The incident highlights the critical importance of verifying fuel system configurations after maintenance actions.