NTSB CAROL · Event
Event DEN89IA047
Aircraft involved
Factual narrative
PLT PREFLIGHTED ACFT AND NOTED INDICATION OF 9 QTS OF OIL IN CRANKCASE. FLT DEPARTED ROSWELL (ROW) IN NIGHT VMC EN ROUTE TO ABQ. PLT HAD JUST LEVELED OFF AT 6500 FT MSL WHEN HE NOTICED OIL PRESSURE GAUGE FLUCTUATING. OIL PRESSURE THEN BEGAN DROPPING AND PLT REVERSED COURSE BACK TO ROW. OIL PRESSURE THEN DROPPED TO ZERO. PLT SAID ENG STARTED MAKING NOISE AND COCKPIT FILLED WITH SMOKE. WITH SOME PWR STILL AVAILABLE, PLT MADE LANDING ON HIGHWAY WITH THE LANDING GEAR UP. POST-INCIDENT EXAM OF ENG DISCLOSED EVIDENCE OF DETONATION. NR 2 PISTON AND RINGS WERE BURNED, ALLOWING COMBUSTION GASES TO ESCAPE INTO CRANKCASE. HIGH EXHAUST GAS PRESSURE WITHIN CRANKCASE VENTED OIL OBERBOARD, CAUSING OIL STARVATION. THE ENG HAD 2053 HRS OF OPERATION AND 998 HRS SINCE A MAJOR OVERHAUL. ON THE MORNING OF THE INCIDENT THE ENG HAD RECEIVED A 100 HR INSPECTION. Source: NTSB Aviation Accident Database (Pre-2008 Archive) Retrieved: 2026-02-12
Verbatim from NTSB's published report. Source file
NTSB_1988_DEN89IA047.txt.
Findings + structured fields enriched from FAA avall.mdb.
Full investigation docket on
data.ntsb.gov ↗.
Beyond the agency record
Search this event elsewhere.
Pre-filled searches into the sources where news + community discussion of aviation events lives. External sources are reported, not agency. Treat them as signal that something happened, not as fact about what happened.
Entity-clustered aviation events in the press — last 24 hr + 30-day archive.
Official agency record + docket.
Investigative docket: factual reports, photos, transcripts.
Long-running aviation incident database (Flight Safety Foundation).
Community NTSB synthesis blog — often has photos and witness reports.
Gold-standard aviation incident blog.
Aviation industry news search.
GA pilot forum — informed but rumor-prone.
GA pilot subreddit search.
Tail-number page — flight history (free tier limited).
AOPA Air Safety Institute search.
Mainstream press coverage. Recent events only.
Privacy-preserving news search.
External links open in a new tab. We don't ingest their content; we deep-link search queries.