What happened
The pilot began a round-trip cross-country flight with a total of 50 gallons of fuel. The initial leg of the trip lasted 2 hours and 15 minutes. Before commencing the return night flight, the pilot chose not to refuel the aircraft.
One hour into the return portion of the flight, the aircraft was 70 nautical miles from its departure point and 9____________________miles from its final destination when the engine suffered a total loss of power. The pilot subsequently executed a forced landing, during which the aircraft impacted trees. There were no injuries reported.
The investigation
An examination of the wreckage showed no evidence of any mechanical failures occurring prior to the impact. Investigators found only a few tablespoons of fuel remaining in the carburetor gascolator. Both main fuel tanks had ruptured and were empty at the time of the investigation. No fuel spill was observed in the area surrounding the wreckage site.
Testing of the last refueling facility used by the pilot confirmed that the fuel was free from contamination. Calculations determined the aircraft's fuel burn rate to be 14 gallons per hour, providing a total flight endurance of 3.5 hours with no reserve. The aircraft had been in operation for a total of 3.3 hours before the engine power loss occurred.