Engine Failure After Skydiving Flight Leads to Off-Field Landing

Incident Details

A pilot reported that after dropping a group of skydivers, he was descending to land following his final flight of the day. The airplane was approximately 1,500 to 1,700 feet above ground level and about 1 1/4 miles from the airport when the engine experienced a total loss of power. The pilot subsequently performed an emergency off-field landing to an open field. The aircraft sustained substantial damage to the fuselage.

Pilot Report

The pilot stated that the fuel gauges were unreliable and that he had incorrectly estimated the fuel quantity remaining. He believed that the loss of engine power was due to fuel exhaustion.

Postaccident Examination

A postaccident examination of the airplane indicated that there were 1 to 2 gallons of fuel remaining in each fuel tank.