Emergency Call
Air traffic controllers received an emergency radio call from a person representing the airplane. The pilot reported that oil was on the windshield and that oil pressure was zero. Controllers provided a heading to divert to the closest airport, but the pilot indicated he could not maintain altitude and stated he would land in a field.
Response and Location
Controllers alerted crash, fire, and rescue personnel to the airplane's location. The airplane was found near the top of a crest in rolling pastureland, approximately eight miles northeast of the diversion airport.
Examination
An on-scene examination of the wreckage revealed no airframe pre-impact anomalies. The empennage was streaked with a liquid consistent with oil. The windshield was broken, and pieces of it were coated with a liquid consistent with oil. The top right side of the engine, aft facing forward, was also coated with a liquid consistent with oil. The engine case and cylinders showed no pre-impact anomalies that would have precluded engine operation.
Reduction Gear Case and Nose Seal
The top of the separated reduction gear case was coated with a liquid consistent with oil. Disassembly showed that the upper right section of the nose seal assembly, which sealed against the reduction gear case, exhibited an area coated with a liquid consistent with oil. The remainder of the seal was intact and was not coated with liquid.
Shoulder Harness Information
The airplane did not have shoulder harnesses installed and was not required to have them installed. Advisory Circular 91-65, "Use of Shoulder Harness in Passenger Seats," in part, stated, "The [National Transportation Safety Board] concluded that shoulder harness use is the most effective way of reducing fatalities and serious injuries in general aviation accidents."