# Incident 19960516013639I: Beech A36, Lawrence, MA, May 16, 1996

- Type: FAA incident report (Accident/Incident Data System), as reported
- Date: May 16, 1996, 10:20 local time
- Place: Lawrence, MA
- Airport: Lawrence Municipal
- Damage: Minor damage
- Phase of flight: Touch And Go Landing
- Operating rules: General operating rules (Part 91)
- Location: 42.7170° N, 71.1235° W: Placed by OpenAirDocs at LAWRENCE MUNI (LWM), within about a mile (OpenAirDocs)
- Nearby events: https://openairdocs.org/map.md?lat=42.7170&lon=-71.1235&mi=10
- Aircraft: N44TE, registered now (https://openairdocs.org/aircraft/N44TE) (OpenAirDocs)
- Registry model: Beech A36 (registry code 1151604, https://openairdocs.org/model/beech-a36) (OpenAirDocs)
- Registry engine: Continental IO-520 series (registry code 17032, https://openairdocs.org/engine/continental-io-520-series) (OpenAirDocs)
- Reported make and model: BEECH A36
- Reported engine: CONT IO520A
- People aboard: 2
- Fatal injuries: 0
- Pilot flight hours: 1,425 total, 250 in this make and model
- FAA source: FAA Aviation Safety Information Portal (https://asip.faa.gov/)
- Page: https://openairdocs.org/incident/19960516013639I

## Narrative

As the FAA filed it, in capitals; the FAA replaces private details with ^PRIVACY DATA OMITTED^.

NARRATIVE: THIS INCIDENT INVOLVED DUAL INSTRUCTIONAL FLIGHT WITH MR. SHAKER AS PILOT BEING TRAINED WITH MR. HEIL AS FLIGHT INSTRUCTOR, AND OCCURRED WHILE PRACTICING TOUCH AND GO OPERATIONS ON RUNWAY 23 AT LAWRENCE AIRPORT IN VMC AND LIGHT WIND. DURING THE FIRST TAKEOFF, JUST AFTER TOUCH DOWN, THE NOSE WHEEL COLLAPSED. INVESTIGATION INTO THE INCIDENT REVEALS THAT THE PILOT APPARENTLY SELECTED "GEAR UP" INSTEAD OF RETRACTING THE FLAPS. THE COMMAND STARTED THE LANDING GEAR RETRACTION SEQUENCE WHICH CAUSES THE NOSE WHEEL TO UNLOCK AND THE MAIN LANDING GEAR DOORS TO OPEN. AS A RESULT, THE NOSE WHEEL COLLAPSED AND THE BOTTOM OF THE GEAR DOORS SCRAPED THE RUNWAY. THE ACTION ALLOWED THE NOSE OF THE AIRCRAFT TO LOWER TO THE GROUND AND THE PROPELLER, UNDER TAKEOFF POWER, TO STRIKE THE RUNWAY A MULTITUDE OF TIMES. THE GEAR SELECTOR AND FLAP SELECTOR ARE LOCATED ON THE BOTTOM OF THE INSTRUMENT PANEL, OUT OF THE VIEW OF THE PILOT DURING NORMAL SCAN WHILE TAKE OFF ROLL. THE RESULTING CONFUSION PROBABLY LED TO THE INADVERTENT SELECTION OF THE LANDING GEAR RETRACT INSTEAD OF THE FLAPS. MINOR DAMAGE TO AIRCRAFT, NO INJURIES. THIS INCIDENT IS CONSIDERED CLOSED ^PRIVACY DATA OMITTED^ A CONVERSATION WITH THE FLIGHT INSTRUCTOR REFERENCE TO HIS DILIGENCE WOULD BE APPROPRIATE.

## Other reports on N44TE (2)

Matched to the same aircraft by N-number and date.

- [Incident 20070514011059I](https://openairdocs.org/incident/20070514011059I), May 14, 2007: Beech A36 (N44TE), Thomaston, GA, Minor damage. (-23) On landing rollout mistakenly moved the landing gear selector to the up position. Pilot had intended to raise the flaps.
- [Incident 19910713033629I](https://openairdocs.org/incident/19910713033629I), Jul 13, 1991: Beech A36 (N44TE), Portland, ME. Engine running rough. Vectored to airport. Landed safely. Enriching mixture solved problem.

From the FAA Accident/Incident Data System. Reports are matched to registry aircraft by N-number and event date, checked against the reported make and model; the registry's history has gaps, so older matches can be wrong. Compare the reported make and model. For accidents, the NTSB's own investigation is the fuller record.

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