19970507014819I

Incident · Minor damage

FAA incident report · Socata MS894A · Martinsburg, WV · May 7, 1997

Date: May 7, 1997 · 15:55 local
Place: Martinsburg, WV
Airport: Eastern Wv Regional/Shepherd
Phase of flight: Ground Taxi, Other Airplane
Operating rules: General operating rules (Part 91)
Damage: Minor damage
Aircraft: N4704W
Reported as: Socata MS894A
People aboard: 1
Fatal injuries: 0
Pilot’s flight hours: 600 total150 in this make and model10 in the last 90 days

N4704WRegistered now · S.O.C.A.T.A. MS894AS/N 11042 · Built 1969 Airframe modelS.O.C.A.T.A. MS894A Engine modelFranklin 6V 350 seriesReciprocating

From the FAA’s Accident/Incident Data System (AIDS), through its Aviation Safety Information Portal, as reported. The NTSB investigates accidents separately, and its record of an accident is the fuller one. The aircraft is matched to the registry 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.

What happened

The FAA’s narrative, in sentence case. The FAA writes it in capitals and removes private details.

Narrative: pilot was performing pre-takeoff run-up when nose landing gear collapsed. Nose landing gear is fixed and constructed of several sheets of aluminum bolted and riveted together. Gear failed by cracking and collapsing approximately halfway between wheel assembly and upper mounting of gear to airframe. Investigation revealed no evidence that failure was induced by a previous hard landing. Collapse caused prop strike and damage to lower cowling.

As the FAA filed it

NARRATIVE: PILOT WAS PERFORMING PRE-TAKEOFF RUN-UP WHEN NOSE LANDING GEAR COLLAPSED. NOSE LANDING GEAR IS FIXED AND CONSTRUCTED OF SEVERAL SHEETS OF ALUMINUM BOLTED AND RIVETED TOGETHER. GEAR FAILED BY CRACKING AND COLLAPSING APPROXIMATELY HALFWAY BETWEEN WHEEL ASSEMBLY AND UPPER MOUNTING OF GEAR TO AIRFRAME. INVESTIGATION REVEALED NO EVIDENCE THAT FAILURE WAS INDUCED BY A PREVIOUS HARD LANDING. COLLAPSE CAUSED PROP STRIKE AND DAMAGE TO LOWER COWLING.