ERA11CA485

Factual narrative

Prior to the flight the pilot preflighted the airplane. He checked the oil quantity and sumped the fuel tanks for water. Start up and taxi was normal. After takeoff the pilot raised the wing flaps and turned to the right. While rolling out of the turn the engine coughed, ran, and then quit. The airplane at this time was approximately 150 feet above ground level. The pilot tried to land on one of the airport's other runways but, he did not have enough altitude or airspeed to complete his turn to final. He then landed the airplane on an unpaved portion of the airport and impacted heavy brush. The airplane structure was substantially damaged. When asked about the engine failure by a Federal Aviation Administration inspector, the pilot advised that the engine failed due to fuel starvation because he had not put any fuel in the wing tanks, and forgot to feed from the header tank. The pilot stated that he conducted a preflight inspection of the airplane, which included checking the fuel tanks for water. The startup and taxi were normal. After takeoff, the pilot raised the wing flaps and turned to the right. While rolling out of the turn, the engine coughed, ran, and then lost power. The airplane was about 150 feet above ground level. The pilot tried to land on another runway, but he did not have enough altitude or airspeed to complete his turn to final approach. He landed on an unpaved portion of the airport and impacted heavy brush, and the airplane structure sustained substantial damage. The pilot said that the engine lost power due to fuel starvation because he had not put any fuel in the wing tanks and forgot to switch the fuel feed to the header tank. Source: NTSB Aviation Accident Database Retrieved: 2026-02-12

NTSB Findings

FAA avdata. C = Cause, F = Factor.

• C Aircraft-Fluids/misc hardware-Fluids-Fuel-Fluid management - C
• C Personnel issues-Task performance-(general)-(general)-Pilot - C