What happened
During a flight intended to travel from Cairns to Kidston, the pilot was acting as a temporary replacement for the regular operator. Upon arriving at Kidston, the pilot inspected the fuel gauges and determined that enough fuel remained for the return journey. As the aircraft reached its climb altitude, the fuel quantity indicated a lower level than initially anticipated; however, after establishing cruise flight, the pilot again assessed that the remaining fuel was sufficient for the planned route.
While passing Mt Garnet, both engine fuel flow gauges began to fluctuate, accompanied by engine surging. The pilot attempted to divert the aircraft toward the Mt Garnet airstrip, but both engines subsequently lost power. During the glide attempt toward the runway 27 threshold, the aircraft struck trees and came to a stop approximately one kilometer from the runway. There were three occupants on board, all of whom escaped with minor injuries, though the aircraft was destroyed.
Findings
Investigations determined that the engines failed because the aircraft ran out of fuel. Due to time constraints between arriving at Cairns and a scheduled departure, the pilot requested only 80 liters of fuel be added to the tanks. While the estimated burn for the return trip was roughly 240 liters, the actual amount in the tanks upon departing Cairns was approximately 220 liters. Because no additional fuel was taken on at Kidston, the aircraft could not complete the flight.
Several contributing factors were identified:
- The specific design of the aircraft makes it difficult to verify fuel levels visually unless the tanks are completely full.
- The pilot's preflight fuel planning was insufficient for the mission requirements.
- Fuel exhaustion occurred because the pilot lacked recent experience performing complex fuel calculations and relied on inadequate refueling procedures.