Student Pilot Runs Out of Fuel During Solo Cross-Country Flight (N5270B)

What happened

A student pilot was conducting a solo cross-country flight. Approximately thirty minutes after departing from the en route stop, the aircraft's engine quit. The pilot reported that he had checked the fuel quantity prior to departure. However, the flight school's policy required refueling at the en route stop, which the pilot did not do. The aircraft was subsequently landed in a field and struck a fence during the landing roll.

The investigation

The aircraft operator reported that there was minimal fuel in the fuel tanks when the aircraft was recovered. This finding corroborated the conclusion that the engine failure was due to fuel exhaustion.