Accident Sequence
After takeoff, the flight climbed to 6,000 feet. As the pilot leveled off, he heard a "loud bang" and felt the airframe shaking. The cockpit then filled with smoke, and he requested a vector to the nearest airport. He attempted to keep the engine running but was unsuccessful. The flight descended and broke out of the clouds at 200 feet above ground level, where he slowed the airplane to less than the best glide airspeed to clear power lines. The airplane landed "rather hard" in a field against furrows, nosed over, then burst into flames. The pilot exited the airplane from the pilot's window.
Engine Examination
Examination of the engine revealed fretting at the main bearing support faying surfaces, with resulting shifting of the No. 2 main bearing. Lubrication distress was noted at all main bearing and connecting rod journals, and for Nos. 3-6 connecting rod bearings. The Nos. 1 and 2 connecting rods were fractured, while one of the connecting rod bolts for the No. 3 cylinder was fractured with necking present. The engine was last overhauled on October 1, 2002, and installed in the accident airplane on October 28, 2002. The engine had accumulated 1,297 hours since being overhauled at the time of the failure, and there was no record that any cylinders had been removed or replaced since the overhaul.