What happened
The aircraft had not been flown for two months prior to this incident, and the pilot's primary objective was to practice touch-and-go landings. Just before departure, maintenance personnel were asked to add 10 gallons of fuel to the right main tank. Upon arrival at the airport, the pilot did not drain any fuel from the aircraft or perform any other form of pre-flight inspection.
After takeoff, the pilot raised the landing gear and noticed an unsafe nose gear light. The nose gear was pumped up, and power was reduced to climb. At this point, the engine began to surge. Between 1,200 and 1,400 feet above ground level (AGL), the pilot turned crosswind but was unable to maintain altitude. The left engine was developing approximately 1,000 RPM.
Descending below 500 feet AGL, the pilot flew toward a field, extended the landing gear, and landed with the gear in transit. The pilot stated that he did not have time to feather the left propeller. Density altitude at the time was 7,974 feet MSL.
The investigation
Engine disassembly revealed no significant discrepancies.