HURRICANE, UT, USA
N1530V
CESSNA 172XP
THE PRIVATE PILOT WAS REPOSITIONING THE AIRPLANE TO ITS NEW OWNERS. DURING CRUISE, HE NOTICED A LOSS OF OIL PRESSURE. 5 MINUTES LATER, THE ENGINE QUIT AND THE PILOT SELECTED A ROUGH FIELD AND MADE A FORCED LANDING. DURING LANDING ROLL, THE LEFT WING AND STABILIZER STRUCK A TREE. A POSTACCIDENT ENGINE TEARDOWN REVEALED AN OIL LEAK IN THE AREA OF THE OIL FILTER MOUNT AND THE ENGINE OIL LEVEL DEPLETED TO TWO QUARTS. THE NUMBER 5 AND 6 ROD BEARINGS SHOWED EVIDENCE OF LOSS OF LUBRICATION, OVERHEATING, AND ULTIMATE FAILURE. THE PILOT REPORTED THAT HE ADDED TWO QUARTS AT A PREVIOUS STOP, BUT THE INVESTIGATION WAS UNABLE TO VERIFY THE REPORTED ADDITION OF OIL.
THE ENGINE OIL LEAK INDUCED CONNECTING ROD FAILURE AND SUBSEQUENT TOTAL POWER LOSS.
Source: NTSB Aviation Accident Database
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