What happened
The incident occurred while the aircraft was operating at cruise altitude. During this phase of flight, the pilot reported hearing a sudden, loud noise. Shortly after the sound, the pilot observed that approximately the upper one-third section of the windshield had fractured or broken away.
Following the structural failure of the windshield, the pilot made the decision to execute a forced landing in an adjacent field. During the descent and approach to the landing site, the aircraft encountered significant ground obstacles. Specifically, the airplane struck a farm plow that was lying in the field. The plow was not visible to the pilot prior to impact because it was hidden from view by tall grass growing in the area.
The investigation
Investigators examined the circumstances surrounding the windshield failure and the subsequent collision with ground objects. A key point of inquiry was the root cause of the initial structural compromise. It could not be definitively determined whether the windshield had a pre-existing defect that led to its failure or if the aircraft struck an object in flight, such as birds or debris, which caused the breakage.
Findings
The sequence of events began with the unexplained noise and subsequent partial loss of the windshield integrity. The pilot's decision to land in a field was a direct response to this emergency. However, the landing site presented hazards that were not apparent from the air. The presence of agricultural equipment, specifically the plow, obscured by vegetation, contributed to the damage sustained during the forced landing.