Introduction
During a flight to an airport, the pilot, who owned the aircraft, encountered an engine malfunction while setting up for landing. The incident resulted in a forced landing that caused damage to the aircraft.
Sequence of Events
While en route, the pilot switched the fuel selector to the right fuel tank and noted that the fuel gauge indicated approximately half full. As the aircraft entered the downwind leg for the runway, the engine began to sputter and lost power. The pilot performed a forced landing in a field located west of the runway. During the landing flare, the left wing made contact with the ground, followed by the nose of the aircraft striking the surface.
Fuel System Findings
An inspection by an FAA official revealed that despite switching the fuel selector to the right tank, the pilot had left the fuel tank indicator (gauge) set to the left tank position. Consequently, the gauge displayed a half-full reading that actually reflected the fuel quantity in the left tank, which was indeed about half full. The right fuel tank, from which the engine was drawing fuel, was empty. The pilot had recently purchased the airplane and was not familiar with the operation of the fuel indicator gauge switch; this switch needed to be positioned to the corresponding fuel tank being used to show the fuel remaining in that specific tank.