The crank case in the engine of a plane that crash-landed in Dawson County last month was cracked when the wreckage was examined by federal investigators.
That's according to a preliminary investigation from the National Transportation Safety Board into the cause of the Oct. 30 crash at the Atlanta Motor Sports Park.
The report quotes the pilot, who suffered serious injuries in the crash, as saying he had departed Lee Gilmer Memorial Airport in Gainesville that morning about 8:00. The plane was headed to Gary, Indiana.
The pilot told investigators the plane developed engine problems, including a "reading of zero on the oil pressure guage." This happened at an altitude of around 8,000 feet, about 25 minutes into the flight.
After declaring an emergency, the pilot began a descent for an emergency landing," according to the report, but lost engine power at around 3,500 feet.
The pilot spotted "an asphalt racetrack" below, and decided to try to land on one of the straight sections but as he neared the surface, a truck moved into his path and when he swerved to avoid it, the tip of one wing struck a earthen berm.
"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," according to the NTSB report, which can be read in full here.
The preliminary report goes on to say a detailed examination of the engine is pending.
