Incident Summary
During a local flight, the pilot reported that the engine experienced a loss of oil pressure and the cockpit began to fill with smoke. In response, he immediately reduced engine power to idle and executed a forced landing to a nearby field. During the landing rollout, the airplane collided with a barbed-wire fence and subsequently nosed over.
Damage
The accident resulted in substantial damage to the fuselage, right wing, and vertical stabilizer.
Postaccident Inspection
A postaccident inspection revealed that the oil supply line to the oil cooler had ruptured. The rupture allowed oil to come into contact with the engine's hot exhaust, producing the smoke observed in the cockpit. The oil line was a rubber, automobile-style hose. The failure occurred immediately adjacent to the oil cooler inlet fitting. Investigators determined that the hose clamp used to secure the oil line to the inlet fitting was not properly positioned over the fitting. This mispositioning allowed the unsupported hose clamp to abrade through the oil line, leading to the rupture.