Accident Sequence
The pilot was on approach to Cheyenne Airport, Wyoming, when he radioed the tower that he was on short final to runway 26, was low on fuel, and was not going to make it. Shortly thereafter, the engine lost power approximately 1.5 nautical miles from the approach end of runway 26. The pilot executed a forced landing on a motorcross track.
Preflight and Fuel Management
The pilot had topped off the airplane's fuel tanks on Friday, June 4, 1999. The following day, Saturday, June 5, he flew the airplane for a short hop of undetermined duration. On the day of the accident, the pilot performed a preflight inspection but did not remove the fuel caps to visually check the fuel quantity. He last calculated the fuel remaining over Fort Morgan, Colorado, determining that he had been airborne for 4.4 hours and had approximately 1 hour of flight time remaining to reach Cheyenne.
Postaccident Examination
A postaccident examination of the airplane revealed that the fuel tanks were empty. Due to a lack of information regarding the first flight on June 5, accurate flight endurance could not be determined.