Accident Summary
During a climb to cruise altitude, the engine experienced two drops in RPM, the second accompanied by a loud bang and vibration. The pilot shut down the engine and attempted a glide to South Dayton Airport but, upon determining the airport could not be reached, chose to land in a nearby sloping field. The landing was hard after the pilot attempted to flare.
Engine Power Loss
The incident began when the engine RPM dropped to 2000 during the climb. The pilot responded by checking the carburetor heat and other instruments but discovered no abnormalities. Shortly thereafter, the RPM dropped further to 1800. At that moment, a loud bang was heard and the engine began to vibrate. The pilot then shut down the engine.
Forced Landing
Following engine shutdown, the pilot attempted to glide the aircraft to South Dayton Airport. However, after assessing the situation, the pilot concluded that the airport was not reachable and decided to land in a nearby field. During the final approach, the pilot noticed that the field sloped upward. The pilot attempted to flare the aircraft, but the landing was hard.