PA-28 pilot reported landing on a highway after experiencing a loss of engine power at low altitude.

Narrative:

This is a report of an incident or event that does not come under the NTSB definition of 'aircraft accident.' this was an off airfield landing that occurred due to engine trouble shortly after takeoff. There was no damage to the aircraft or property; and no injuries to persons on-board or on the ground.following an IFR flight in VMC conditions my safety pilot; who is also a CFI; and I decided to zero time my night currency practicing stop and goes at our home airport. After the second takeoff; we encountered a loss of power from the engine at approximately 300 ft. My safety pilot and I performed the immediate emergency action item checklist; but were unable to get the engine to develop full power. It seemed like there was enough to maintain a shallower than normal descent; but not enough to return to the runway. The training I have been given and teach took over and we decided to land with traffic on the highway next to the airport. We could tell there was a tree line between us and the highway; but could not tell if we would clear them or any power lines. I do not recall how close we came to them; but did miss them and set down safely on the highway without any damage to property; the plane; or ourselves. The FAA initial report has cited this was due to fuel mismanagement. It was noted during the investigation; that the fuel selector was set to the fullest tank.

Original NASA ASRS Text

Title: PA-28 pilot reported landing on a highway after experiencing a loss of engine power at low altitude.

Narrative: This is a report of an incident or event that does not come under the NTSB definition of 'aircraft accident.' This was an off airfield landing that occurred due to engine trouble shortly after takeoff. There was no damage to the aircraft or property; and no injuries to persons on-board or on the ground.Following an IFR flight in VMC conditions my safety pilot; who is also a CFI; and I decided to zero time my night currency practicing stop and goes at our home airport. After the second takeoff; we encountered a loss of power from the engine at approximately 300 ft. My safety pilot and I performed the immediate emergency action item checklist; but were unable to get the engine to develop full power. It seemed like there was enough to maintain a shallower than normal descent; but not enough to return to the runway. The training I have been given and teach took over and we decided to land with traffic on the highway next to the airport. We could tell there was a tree line between us and the highway; but could not tell if we would clear them or any power lines. I do not recall how close we came to them; but did miss them and set down safely on the highway without any damage to property; the plane; or ourselves. The FAA initial report has cited this was due to fuel mismanagement. It was noted during the investigation; that the fuel selector was set to the fullest tank.

Data retrieved from NASA's ASRS site and automatically converted to unabbreviated mixed upper/lowercase text. This report is for informational purposes with no guarantee of accuracy. See NASA's ASRS site for official report.

Attributes
ACN	1384169
Time
Date	201608
Local Time Of Day	1801-2400
Place
Locale Reference	ZZZ.Airport
State Reference	US
Environment
Flight Conditions	VMC
Light	Night
Aircraft 1
Make Model Name	PA-28 Cherokee/Archer/Dakota/Pillan/Warrior
Operating Under FAR Part	Part 91
Flight Phase	Initial Climb
Route In Use	Visual Approach
Flight Plan	None
Component
Aircraft Component	Engine
Person 1
Function	Pilot Flying Single Pilot
Qualification	Flight Crew Flight Instructor Flight Crew Commercial Flight Crew Instrument Flight Crew Multiengine
Experience	Flight Crew Last 90 Days 7 Flight Crew Total 1907 Flight Crew Type 206
Events
Anomaly	Aircraft Equipment Problem Critical Inflight Event / Encounter Fuel Issue