| Crash location | 34.949444°N, 100.878056°W |
| Nearest city | Clarendon, TX
34.937829°N, 100.888199°W 1.0 miles away |
| Tail number | N5196L |
|---|---|
| Accident date | 02 Oct 2016 |
| Aircraft type | Piper Pa 28-180 |
| Additional details: | None |
On October 2, 2016, about 1520 central daylight time, a Piper PA-28-180 airplane, N5196L, was damaged during a forced landing near Clarendon, Texas. The student rated pilot sustained minor injuries and the airplane was substantially damaged. The airplane was to Tohijoco LLC and operated by Coyote Flight under the provisions of 14 Code of Federal Regulations Part 91 as a personal flight. Visual meteorological conditions prevailed for the flight which operated under visual flight rules flight following. The cross-country flight departed the Rick Husband Amarillo International Airport (AMA), Amarillo, Texas, at 1405 and was en route to the Childress Municipal Airport (CDS), Childress, Texas.
The pilot reported to the responding FAA inspector that while in cruise flight the engine lost power and he performed a forced landing to a field. During the landing, the airplane's wings and firewall were damaged.
The airplane was transported to the operator's facility for an examination. The engine was examined under the auspices of an Federal Aviation Administration inspector. The examination noted damage to the engine was consistent with lubrication distress. Further examination of the engine found the metal oil screen pickup fouled with metal. The source of the metal was from a broken piston pin.
During the examination, it was discovered that the engine's oil and oil filter had recently been changed. The oil filter, which had been removed, was examined and metal was found in the filter. A non-mechanic rated person performed preventative maintenance, changed the oil and oil filter prior to the accident. During the oil change, he noticed the metal, but did not consider this to be an indication of a problem.
The failure of a cylinder piston pin, which resulted in an obstructed oil inlet screen, reduced the amount of oil available to the engine, and led to the subsequent loss of engine power. Contributing to the accident was the failure of the nonmechanic, who had recently changed the oil and oil filter, to recognize that metal in the filter was indicative of a problem.