NTSB Factual Report

On October 30, 2017, about 0826 eastern daylight time, a Piper PA-32R-300 airplane, N4213F, sustained substantial damage during a forced landing on an asphalt-covered automobile race track about 4 miles west-northwest of Dawsonville, Georgia. The private pilot sustained serious injuries. The airplane was registered to Peavy LLC and was being operated as a 14 Code of Federal Regulations Part 91 instrument flight rules (IFR) flight. Visual meteorological conditions prevailed and an IFR flight plan had been filed. The flight departed Gainesville, Georgia (GVL) about 0807, destined for Gary, Indiana (GYY).

According to the pilot, while climbing through 8,000 ft mean sea level (msl) to an assigned altitude of 10,000 ft msl, he heard a sound consistent with a propeller overspeed, which lasted about 5 seconds before returning to normal. Coinciding with the sound, was a low oil quantity light and a reading of zero on the oil pressure gauge. After declaring an emergency, the pilot began a descent for an emergency landing. As the airplane descended through about 5,000 ft msl, the pilot heard a loud "pop or bang" and saw a puff of smoke emit from under the engine cowling, and smoke entered the cockpit through the cabin heat system. Around 3,500 ft msl, the pilot tried to add some power before sensing a "bad vibration" that felt as if a propeller blade had separated. About the same time as the vibration, the engine lost all power.

Seeing an asphalt-covered automobile racetrack below, the pilot selected one of the straight sections of track for landing. As the airplane neared the surface, a white truck moved in the way, and the pilot veered the airplane left to avoid a collision. Following the maneuver, the airplane's right wing struck a dirt berm, resulting in substantial damage to the wings and fuselage.

An on-site examination of the airplane by a Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) aviation safety inspector revealed that the bottom of the fuselage was coated in oil and the engine crank case was fractured at the upper aft attach bolts of the number six cylinder. All three propeller blades were present, with only one blade exhibiting signs of damage. The damaged blade was bent aft with no significant signs of leading edge damage or scaring. The two remaining blades were free of impact damage.

The airplane was equipped with a Lycoming IO-540 series engine, which was examined on November 16, 2017. The engine is a six-cylinder, air cooled, direct drive, horizontally opposed, normally aspirated, fuel injected, internal combustion engine. Extensive fracturing of the engine crankcase above the #6 cylinder was present. The engine was disassembled for inspection and the crankcase was opened. The #3 and #4 main bearings on both the left and right side of the crankcase were wiped with copper flashing and bearing material was extruding. The connecting rod and crankshaft journals for the #5 cylinder exhibited signs consistent with thermal damage with the bearing extruded. The connecting rod and crankshaft journals for the #6 cylinder were fragmented, however both connecting rod bolts remained in place and attached. The piston and wrist pin remained attached with about 3 inches of the fractured connecting rod.

The airplane was equipped with an Air Wolf remote mounted oil filter (P/N 0FB 10). The kit consists of two hoses, an adapter that mounts to the engine's accessory case, and an oil filter bracket that mounts to the airplane's firewall. When the kit is installed, the oil filter is remotely mounted to the airplane's firewall. A B-nut on one of the remote mounted oil filter lines was observed to be loose with about 2 ½ threads showing. The B-nut was tightened by hand and rotated about 1 and ¾ turns with about ½ thread showing.

According to the pilot, he was not an airframe or powerplant mechanic, but he said that he replaced the line about a week before the accident, and this was the first flight since that installation.

The closest official weather observation station is GVL, which is located about 20 miles southeast of the accident site. At 0753, a METAR was reporting, in part, wind 270° at 8 knots; visibility 10 statute miles; clouds and ceiling clear; temperature 36° F; dew point 28° F; altimeter 29.96 inches of Mercury.

NTSB Probable Cause

The failure of the pilot, who was not a certified mechanic, to tighten the B-nut on a remotely mounted oil filter line, which resulted in oil exhaustion, a total loss of oil pressure, and a subsequent total loss of engine power.