SMA LANDS ON CLOSED RWY.

Narrative

WHILE ENRTE FROM TRINIDAD; CO; VIA CALHAN; CO; TO LAJUNTA; CO. I INADVERTENTLY LANDED ON A CLOSED RWY AT MEADOW LAKE ARPT. THERE WAS NO DAMAGE TO THE ACFT OR PROPERTY AND THERE WERE NO INJURIES. WHEN APCHING MEADOW LAKE ARPT I NOTICED THAT THE FUEL GAUGES WHICH HAD BEEN INDICATING NORMALLY WERE NOW INDICATING VERY LOW. I WOULD HAVE SUSPECTED THE GAUGES WERE IN ERROR EXCEPT FOR THE FACT THAT FUEL HAD BEEN DRAINING FROM THE FUEL VENT PRIOR TO DEP BUT HAD STOPPED BEFORE TKOF. THIS WAS COMPOUNDED BY THE RADIO; WHICH HAD BEEN WORKING NORMALLY; FAILING. I MADE A LOW PASS OVER THE RWY AND SAW THAT THERE WAS CONSTRUCTION ON THE FAR END BUT THERE WAS SEVERAL THOUSAND FT OF USABLE RWY. DURING THE LOW PASS I WAS DISTRACTED BY THE PRESENCE OF 2 OTHER ACFT IN THE PATTERN AND THEREFORE DID NOT SEE THE YELLOW X'S AT THE APCH END OF THE RWY. AFTER LNDG AND SHUTTING DOWN AND THEN RESTARTING; THE FUEL RETURNED TO NORMAL INDICATION SO I DEPARTED ON THE OPEN XWIND RWY. FROM LNDG TO TKOF WAS ABOUT 15 MINS. BELIEVING I HAD A LOW FUEL EMER AND HAVING ALL THAT OPEN RWY IN FRONT OF ME I LANDED NOT KNOWING THAT THE RWY WAS CLOSED. ALTHOUGH I WAS DISTR BY OTHER ACFT I DON'T BELIEVE THERE WAS ENOUGH CONTRAST BTWN THE YELLOW X'S AND THE BACKGND THEY WERE ON. I DIDN'T CHK MEADOW LAKE NOTAMS BECAUSE THAT WAS NOT MY DEST. THE RADIO FAILURE COMPOUNDED THE WHOLE THING. I WAS A NAVY PLT FOR 12 YRS; AN AIRLINE PLT FOR 25 YRS; AND I HAVE BEEN FLYING FOR 38 YRS. I HAVE MANY THOUSANDS OF HRS OF FLT TIME. BESIDES THIS AIRPLANE I HAVE OWNED AN SMA A AND AN SMT. I FEEL BADLY THAT I LANDED ON A CLOSED RWY BUT IF I HAD HAD THE FUEL EMER THAT I THOUGHT I HAD I COULD HAVE FELT BETTER ABOUT IT. IT WAS DETERMINED THAT THE MASTER SWITCH WAS INTERMITTENT AND THAT THE RADIO HAD A LOOSE GND. THE AIRPLANE WHICH I RECENTLY PURCHASED WAS AN SMA B; AND HAD BEEN ANNUALED ABOUT 2 WKS PRIOR.