# Incident 19970507014819I: Socata MS894A, Martinsburg, WV, May 7, 1997

- Type: FAA incident report (Accident/Incident Data System), as reported
- Date: May 7, 1997, 15:55 local time
- Place: Martinsburg, WV
- Airport: Eastern Wv Regional/Shepherd
- Damage: Minor damage
- Phase of flight: Ground Taxi, Other Airplane
- Operating rules: General operating rules (Part 91)
- Location: 39.4024° N, 77.9830° W: Placed by OpenAirDocs at EASTERN WV RGNL/SHEPHERD FLD (MRB), within about a mile (OpenAirDocs)
- Nearby events: https://openairdocs.org/map.md?lat=39.4024&lon=-77.9830&mi=10
- Aircraft: N4704W, registered now (https://openairdocs.org/aircraft/N4704W) (OpenAirDocs)
- Registry model: S.O.C.A.T.A. MS894A (registry code 8402842, https://openairdocs.org/model/s-o-c-a-t-a-ms894a) (OpenAirDocs)
- Registry engine: Franklin 6V 350 series (registry code 27043, https://openairdocs.org/engine/franklin-6v-350-series) (OpenAirDocs)
- Reported make and model: SOCATA MS894A
- People aboard: 1
- Fatal injuries: 0
- Pilot flight hours: 600 total, 150 in this make and model, 10 in the last 90 days
- FAA source: FAA Aviation Safety Information Portal (https://asip.faa.gov/)
- Page: https://openairdocs.org/incident/19970507014819I

## Narrative

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

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.

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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