Incident
During preflight, the pilot checked the aircraft's fuel gauges and interpreted them as showing that the fuel tanks were full. He did not perform a visual inspection of the tanks. Approximately one hour after departure, the right engine failed. Several minutes later, the left engine also failed. The pilot performed an emergency landing in a field located northwest of Albuquerque.
Pilot Statement
In his accident report, the pilot stated: 'When I viewed the [fuel] gauges, I mistook the ''600'' lbs. as normal for ''full aux.'' When I pressed the toggle switch, and saw movement to the ''left''... I mistook this for the mains.' This indicates that he believed the fuel gauges were indicating a full fuel load when they were not.
Postaccident Examination
A postaccident examination of the aircraft revealed that no fuel was present in either the auxiliary fuel tanks or the main fuel tanks. The fuel tanks were empty.
Probable Cause
The accident was caused by the pilot's misinterpretation of the fuel gauges and his failure to visually confirm the fuel quantity before flight, which led to fuel exhaustion and the failure of both engines.