I was flying to south Georgia on the afternoon of April 12, 2007. I was on an instrument flight plan. The low oil pressure light came on. I notified ATC (air traffic control) immediately. Thankfully I was on an instrument flight plan and they knew which “blip” I was on the radar. I was nine miles from the closest airport. The engine quit when I was still six miles away.

From the time the engine quit until I was on the ground was only three to four minutes, but it seemed as if it had been 10-15. I was able to glide the airplane to the ground completely under control. There was never any doubt in my mind about making a safe landing.

Eventually I expect someone will figure out the cause of the engine failure. The plane is a total write off but I’m fine and unhurt. All of my training proved itself in these few minutes of flight. I expect to be in the air again in a few days. This won’t dissuade me from pursuing a commercial pilot certificate and a flight instructor rating.

(This post is dated for the date of the event. The pictures were taken the day after. This was originally posted on my model railroading website at the time it happened. I’m now trying to combine disparate domains into a single blog, now early in 2021. The link to the NTSB report was not in the original post.)

Thanks to my friend Brook Facey for visiting the site with me the next day and taking pictures.