Primary finding
Probable cause
failure of the #2 cylinder connecting rod bolt due to oil starvation as a result of the shifting of the main bearing. A factor was the unsuitable terrain for the forced landing.
Investigator assessment
Analysis narrative
While entering a left base leg for landing, the engine lost power. A forced landing to a city street was executed. During the landing roll, the airplane collided with a pickup truck, light poles, and a retaining wall. Internal examination of the engine revealed the #2 main bearing had heat damage and had spun. The #2 rod cap bearing had heavy wear and was heat discolored.
Source record
Factual narrative
On April 26, 1996, about 1430 mountain daylight time, a Cessna T210M, N724YY, registered to a private owner, and operated by Gene's Flight School as a Title 14 CFR Part 91 aerial photography flight, was destroyed during a forced landing near El Paso, Texas. Visual meteorological conditions prevailed, and a flight plan was not filed. The commercial pilot and his two passengers were not injured. A person in a pickup truck that the airplane struck received minor injuries. The flight originated from El Paso, Texas, about 1 hour 15 minutes before the accident. According to a FAA inspector, the airplane was entering a left base for runway 26L at El Paso International Airport when the airplane's engine lost power. A forced landing to Yarbrough street was executed. During the landing roll, the airplane collided with a pickup truck, light poles, and a retaining wall. Initial examination of the engine by the FAA inspector revealed the #2 cylinder connecting rod had penetrated the case. According to the inspector, the #2 cylinder had been replaced on April 4, 1996, about 9 hours prior to the accident. An internal inspection of the engine revealed that the #2 main bearing "had very heavy heat damage and melting, and had spun." The #2 rod cap bolts were separated, and the rod cap bearing had heavy wear and was heat discolored. -