What happened
The flight was proceeding toward its intended destination when the aircraft's engine ceased operation. At the time of the failure, the aircraft was located approximately 25 miles short of where it planned to land. In response to the emergency, the pilot attempted to execute a landing in a nearby river.
The investigation
Following the incident, investigators reviewed the pilot's pre-flight planning and fuel calculations. The pilot stated that his calculations indicated the aircraft should have had a no-reserve endurance of 6 hours and 15 minutes. However, records showed that the aircraft had flown for a total of 5 hours and 16 minutes when the engine quit.
Findings
The discrepancy between the calculated endurance and the actual flight time suggests a significant error in fuel management or consumption estimates. The failure occurred well before the end of the planned flight, indicating that the available fuel was exhausted earlier than anticipated.