Enroute controller described what may have been an airspace infraction when an aircraft declared an ...

Narrative:

An aerostar checked on my frequency and advised that he had smoke in the cockpit and was declaring an emergency. I asked the pilot his intentions and he wished to land immediately at the closest airport. The aerostar was not yet in my airspace. I began offering airports to the pilot; and he advised that he had visual with an airport 'at his 10 o'clock.' the pilot began a sharp turn and rapid descent towards an airport. My d-side completed coordination with all affected sectors including the sector that the aircraft was in and the approach control into which the aircraft was descending. The pilot later advised that the smoke had cleared in the cockpit and he determined the source to be a heater. He advised that he wished to continue to his original destination.

Original NASA ASRS Text

Title: Enroute Controller described what may have been an airspace infraction when an aircraft declared an emergency; started an immediate descent and turn toward the nearest airport.

Narrative: An Aerostar checked on my frequency and advised that he had smoke in the cockpit and was declaring an emergency. I asked the pilot his intentions and he wished to land immediately at the closest airport. The Aerostar was not yet in my airspace. I began offering airports to the pilot; and he advised that he had visual with an airport 'at his 10 o'clock.' The pilot began a sharp turn and rapid descent towards an airport. My D-Side completed coordination with all affected sectors including the sector that the aircraft was in and the Approach Control into which the aircraft was descending. The pilot later advised that the smoke had cleared in the cockpit and he determined the source to be a heater. He advised that he wished to continue to his original destination.

Data retrieved from NASA's ASRS site as of July 2013 and automatically converted to unabbreviated mixed upper/lowercase text. This report is for informational purposes with no guarantee of accuracy. See NASA's ASRS site for official report.

Attributes
ACN	987537
Time
Date	201201
Local Time Of Day	1801-2400
Place
Locale Reference	ZZZ.ARTCC
State Reference	US
Aircraft 1
Make Model Name	PA-60 600 Aerostar
Flight Phase	Cruise
Flight Plan	IFR
Person 1
Function	Enroute
Qualification	Air Traffic Control Fully Certified
Events
Anomaly	ATC Issue All Types

Enroute controller described what may have been an airspace infraction when an aircraft declared an emergency; started an immediate descent and turn toward the nearest airport.