Shortly after lift-off, at about 50 feet, the right engine surged and lost power. The pilot was unable to control the yawing effect and attempted a landing beyond the departure end of the airstrip. During this attempt the engine surged to power once but as this exacerbated his control difficulties the pilot closed both throttles. The aircraft cartwheeled after striking the ground with the left wingtip. The aircraft came to rest in a paddock beyond the 1,000 metre airstrip. The fuel selector for the right engine was found in the auxiliary position. The pilot later commented that he probably missed the fuel selection out of his pretakeoff checklist. He said that he had been in the habit of using a memorised checklist for the operation of the aircraft and at times he had forgotten to switch the tank selection from auxiliary to main tank prior to landing, as required by the operating instructions in the aircraft flight manual. The pilot also commented that he felt uncurrent in asymmetric operations. Examination of the right engine did not reveal any defects which could cause a power loss. Significant Factors The following factors were considered relevant to the development of the accident: 1. The pilot did not follow flight manual operating instructions for the operation of the aircraft fuel system. 2. The pilot relied on a memorised checklist. 3. The pilot was uncurrent in asymmetric operations.