NYC82FNA15

During the previous flight, the aircraft had run out of fuel and was successfully landed in an open field. This occurred while the fuel gauge was indicating 1/4 full. The pilot serviced the plane with 5 gallons of no-lead auto fuel and stripped it of excess weight. He attempted to fly out of the field, but had insufficient speed at the decision point and aborted. He then elected to takeoff from a 500 ft section of an adjacent highway with trees at the end of the area. The takeoff was begun on a bright moonlit light and with illumination from a street light. After lift-off in a northeasterly direction, a sharp left turn was made at an altitude of 12 to 25 ft AGL to avoid the trees. Also, this turn was away from power lines on the right side of the highway. A witness stated that the right wing hit the trees. At about the same time or shortly thereafter, the left wing contacted the ground and the plane crashed.