What happened
The aircraft experienced an in-flight loss of power while operating approximately two miles from a lake. The pilot reported that the engine quit at an altitude of roughly 2,000 feet above ground level. Following the power failure, the airplane stalled and impacted trees near the shoreline before tumbling into the water.
Prior to the flight, the pilot relied on the fuel quantity gauges to determine the amount of fuel remaining in the tanks. The gauges indicated zero fuel in the left tank and between three-eighths and five-eighths of a tank in the right tank. The pilot later acknowledged that he should have used a dipstick to physically measure the fuel levels instead of relying on the instrument readings.
The investigation
The investigation focused on the cause of the engine failure and the accuracy of the fuel measurement methods used by the pilot. The primary finding was that the engine quit due to fuel exhaustion. The discrepancy between the gauge readings and the actual fuel state led to the critical error in pre-flight planning.
Findings
The accident was caused by the pilot's decision to rely on potentially inaccurate fuel gauges rather than performing a physical check with a dipstick. This resulted in fuel exhaustion during flight, leading to the stall and subsequent crash into the lake environment.