Incident Overview
During a flight, the engine stopped and the cockpit filled with smoke. The pilot shut down fuel to the engine and initiated a glide toward an airport, but determined the airport was too far away. He then selected a field for a forced landing.
Approach and Landing
On final approach, the pilot had to stay high to avoid a TV antenna. The field sloped downhill, and the pilot was unable to slow the aircraft sufficiently to stop before the end of the field. He pulled the plane up, and it came to rest in a tree top.
Post-Impact Events
The doors were jammed, so the pilot broke out a window with his hands. He climbed out and down a tree, while his wife, the passenger, remained in the tree and waited to be rescued. She was taken to a hospital where gasoline was rinsed off and she was examined.
Engine Examination
A teardown of the engine revealed that the #3 piston pin, Franklin PN 20504F, had failed. The engine had a total of 367 hours of flying time.