NTSB Factual Report

The pilot reported that she was on a night cross-country flight cruising below 4,000 feet mean sea level at “full throttle” and she did not lean the mixture. She estimated her fuel consumption was about 7.3 to 7.6 gallons per hour and had been inflight for about 3.3 hours when the engine suddenly went silent and stopped producing power. The airplane has a total fuel capacity of 26.0 gallons with 22.5 gallons of usable fuel. The pilot reported that because of the increased headwind she had briefly considered an enroute stop for additional fuel but decided to continue. During a shallow turn to enter the traffic pattern the airplane experienced a complete loss of power and the pilot made an emergency off-airport landing about 6 miles from the destination. The airplane impacted trees and bushes in a thickly wooded area which resulted in substantial damage to both wings, both ailerons, the engine mount, the fuselage, and the empennage. A postaccident examination found that only a trace of fuel remained. The pilot also attributed her lack of more serious or fatal injuries to her use of a shoulder harness. She said she would never again fly an airplane not equipped with a shoulder harness.

NTSB Probable Cause

The pilot’s poor in-flight decision-making and improper fuel management, which resulted in a loss of engine power due to fuel exhaustion.