Occurrence
On 9 October 2021 at 12:20 UTC, a Diamond DA40D (serial D4.369) departed Ostend Airport for a dual cross-country navigation flight with an instructor and a trainee. After navigating to Geraardsbergen and Lokeren, the flight concluded with a simulated forced landing exercise northwest of Ursel airfield. During the exercise, the engine was at idle from 2000 ft to 500 ft. The instructor then applied power; the engine responded to 100% load. As the airplane climbed to 800 ft, engine power reduced to 80% and the airplane levelled off at 1000 ft. Oil pressure decreased. The crew called EBUL to announce intention to land. Oil fumes appeared around the oil cap cover; oil pressure dropped to zero and the engine stopped. The instructor, unable to reach EBUL, turned right to avoid the village of Knesselare and selected a landing zone. During approach, a wooden fence was spotted, so the instructor chose another field. The airplane landed in a beet field, rolled 70 m, then entered a corn field and stopped. The two occupants exited uninjured.
Aircraft Information
The Diamond DA40D is a four-seat low-wing monoplane with a fixed tricycle landing gear and T-tail, powered by a Technify Motors TAE 125-02-99 (Centurion 2.0) diesel engine rated at 135 hp. The engine is controlled by a full authority digital engine control (FADEC) system with two independent channels. The propeller is a 3-blade MT Propellers MTV-6-A/187-129. The last 100-hour inspection was performed one month prior, at 1005 engine hours. The aircraft had accumulated 1050 engine hours.
Meteorological Information
METARs at 12:20 UTC from surrounding airports reported light winds (3-4 kt), CAVOK conditions, temperatures around 16-17 °C, and QNH 1028 hPa.
Recorded Data
The FADEC system recorded engine parameters such as rpm, load (%), oil pressure, and oil temperature. Pilots used the SkyDemon app for flight logging. The airplane was not equipped with flight data recorders.
Emergency Landing
The instructor announced a Mayday on Brussels Information frequency 126.9 Hz, though ATS reported no Mayday heard. The instructor performed an emergency landing using a field selection technique. The airplane touched down in a beet field, then traversed into a corn field where it stopped. An overflying aircraft notified ATS, initiating a Search and Rescue operation.
Damage
The aircraft sustained substantial damage. The nose landing gear and right main landing gear leg were ruptured. The underside showed heavy engine oil loss. Inside the engine compartment, broken aluminum cast pieces and a copper bushing indicated internal engine damage. Corn plants were damaged by impact.