A PA28 PILOT'S DEST WAS OBSCURED ON A NIGHT FLT. UNABLE TO LOCATE A NEARBY ALT; WITH ATC'S HELP HE DECLARED AN EMER FOR LOW FUEL AND LANDED AT A MIL ARPT.

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I DEPARTED ON A VFR FLT TO ZZZ. THE OFFICIAL WX BRIEFING I RECEIVED FROM THE FSS BEFORE DEP INDICATED VFR CONDITIONS ALONG THE ENTIRE RTE OF FLT AS WELL AS VARIOUS LAYERS OF CLOUDS AT 5000 FT AND ABOVE ALONG THE RTE AND AT THE DEST. THERE WERE 2 PEOPLE ON BOARD. I WAS CLRED PER MY FILED FLT PLAN BY APCH. UPON DSNDING TOWARDS ZZZ FROM APPROX 10 MI OUT; I ENCOUNTERED WHAT APPEARED TO BE AN UNFORECAST BROKEN LAYER OF CLOUDS AT WHAT I ESTIMATED TO BE 1300 FT. I HAD INITIAL VISUAL CONTACT OF ZZZ AT 3 MI AND SWITCHED OVER TO ADVISORY AS AUTH BY APCH. AT THIS TIME I HAD 45 MINS FUEL REMAINING ON BOARD. UPON DSNDING TOWARDS THE AIRFIELD; I LOST SIGHT OF IT DUE TO CLOUDS BTWN ME AND THE ARPT. I HAD VISUAL REF TO THE GND AT ALL TIMES; BUT WOULD HAVE TO CONTINUE FORWARD THROUGH CLOUDS TO REACQUIRE THE ARPT. I AM NOT IFR CERTIFIED SO I BROKE OFF THE DSCNT AND CLBED BACK ABOVE THE CLOUD LAYER INSTEAD OF TRYING TO GET UNDERNEATH IT. I CIRCLED TWICE IN AN ATTEMPT TO LOCATE THE AIRFIELD. AFTER I COULD NOT LOCATE IT; I SWITCHED BACK TO APCH FREQ AND ADVISED THEM OF THE SITUATION. APCH RECOMMENDED I TRY TO LAND AT ZZZ1. AS I TURNED S TOWARDS ZZZ1; THE ENG SPUTTERED AND ALMOST DIED. I SWITCHED FROM THE R TANK (NOW POSSIBLY DRY) TO THE L TANK AND KEPT THE ENG RUNNING. I IMMEDIATELY DECLARED AN EMER WITH APCH; ADVISING THEM I HAD APPROX 20 MINS OF FUEL REMAINING. I LOCATED ZZZ1 BUT COULD NOT ACTIVATE ANY RWY LIGHTING ON THEIR UNICOM FREQ DESPITE MULTIPLE ATTEMPTS. I ADVISED APCH I COULD NOT DISCERN THE RWY AT ZZZ1; NEEDED ANOTHER PLACE TO LAND; AND WAS CRITICALLY LOW ON FUEL. AT THAT TIME; APCH ADVISED ME TO LAND AT ZZZ2; AN ARMY AIRFIELD. I TURNED TOWARDS ZZZ2 AND BEGAN LOOKING FOR THE FIELD. ONCE I IDENTED THE AIRFIELD; APCH HAD ME SWITCH TO THE ZZZ2 ADVISORY FREQ; AFTER WHICH ADVISORY CLRED ME TO LAND. I MADE A FULL STOP LNDG WITHOUT FURTHER INCIDENT AND SHUT DOWN ON THE RWY AS DIRECTED. AFTER BEING APCHED BY EMER PERSONNEL; I WAS INFORMED TO FOLLOW AN AIRFIELD MGMNT VAN OVER TO A PARKING AREA; WHICH I DID. THE ACFT WAS SECURED AND LEFT THERE. I FILLED OUT PAPERWORK WITH THE AIRFIELD MGMNT REPRESENTATIVE WHO HELPED US AND ALSO WITH POLICE OFFICERS WHO RESPONDED. I WAS ADVISED I COULD RETURN THE NEXT DAY WITH FUEL FOR THE ACFT (NO AVGAS ON THE FIELD) AND I COULD DEPART ONCE IT WAS CONFIRMED ALL PAPERWORK WAS COMPLETED. I RETURNED THE NEXT MORNING; FUELED THE ACFT AND COMPLETED ADDITIONAL PAPERWORK AT THE REQUEST OF THE AIRFIELD MGR. I DEPARTED THE AIRFIELD AND RETURNED TO ZZZ. WX: SOME SEVERE WX HAD MOVED THROUGH THE DEST AREA EARLIER IN THE EVENING. I CHKED THE WX ROUTINELY THROUGHOUT THE AFTERNOON AND CALLED FSS FOR A STANDARD WX BRIEF BEFORE THE DECISION TO DEPART. WE EVEN DELAYED THE DEP TO GIVE THE WX ADDITIONAL TIME TO CLR THE AREA. THE WX ALONG THE RTE OF FLT WAS AS FORECAST AND THERE WERE NO ISSUES. IT WAS LITERALLY THE LAST 10 MI WHEN A BROKEN/UNDERCAST LAYER APPEARED UNDERNEATH US; PREVENTING ME FROM FINDING THE ARPT. I REALIZE IN HINDSIGHT I SHOULD HAVE RECOGNIZED WHAT THE UNDERCAST CONDITION POTENTIALLY MEANT TO THE FLT AND DIVERTED BEFORE CONTINUING FURTHER. FUEL: ALTHOUGH I HAD ENOUGH FUEL RESERVE PER FAR FOR A VFR FLT AT NIGHT; IT TURNED OUT TO BE THE ABSOLUTE MINIMUM NEEDED WHEN I COULD NOT LAND AT THE INTENDED DEST AND THEN COULD NOT LAND AT THE NEAREST ARPT RECOMMENDED. DECLARING AN EMER: THIS DECISION WAS IMMEDIATE AFTER ALMOST LOSING THE ENG TO APPARENT FUEL STARVATION. THE CTLR DID AN EXCELLENT JOB OF GETTING US OVER TO A NEARBY ARPT; PROVIDING FREQS TO ATTEMPT TO RAISE THE PCL; AND THEN OF COURSE ARRANGING TO GET US OVER TO ZZZ2 WITH A LARGE; FULLY LIT RWY STAFFED WITH EMER PERSONNEL. LESSONS LEARNED: THE WX BRIEF AND DECISION TO DEPART WAS SOUND; BUT NOT THE BETTER DECISION. I KNOW I NEED TO RECOGNIZE WX AND FUEL SITUATIONS SUCH AS THESE MUCH SOONER IN THE FLT; AND NEED TO CARRY MORE FUEL THAN MINIMUM RESERVES. DECLARING THE EMER PROBABLY SAVED OUR LIVES; AS EVEN ONE MORE CIRCLE HUNTING FOR ONE OF THE ARPTS LIKELY WOULD HAVE EXHAUSTED THE FUEL SUPPLY PRIOR TO US MAKING IT TO ZZZ2.