ERA20CA211

The student pilot reported he had planned a 17 nautical mile trip to fuel the airplane. He estimated the right wing fuel tank was 1/4 to 3/8 full, which he believed was sufficient for the flight, and that the left tank contained about 1 gallon of fuel. While on approach, he moved the fuel selector to the left tank for landing. He stated the engine ran “poorly”, so he switched back to the right tank, and the engine “started back up and quit 3 times.” He prepared for an off-field landing, during which the airplane stuck trees inside the airport perimeter fence, short of the runway. Following the accident, the pilot advised a Federal Aviation Administration inspector that the airplane had not undergone an annual inspection for 2 to 3 years. At the time he was interviewed by the inspector, he did not have his pilot or maintenance records for the airplane available. The pilot did not submit a National Transportation Safety Board Pilot/Operator Aircraft Accident/Incident Report Form 6120.1. A Federal Aviation Administration inspector performed a cursory examination of the wreckage after the accident, after it had been recovered from the accident site to a hangar. The amount of fuel remaining in the fuel tanks after the accident was not measured. The inspector confirmed that both wings and the fuselage were substantially damaged. The quantity of fuel onboard the airplane was not quantified nor were the airframe or engine examined in any greater detail.