# Accident 19990215001359A: Cessna 414, Phoenix, AZ, February 15, 1999 - Type: FAA accident report (Accident/Incident Data System), as reported - Date: February 15, 1999, 11:43 local time - Place: Phoenix, AZ - Airport: Phoenix Sky Harbor International - Damage: Substantial damage - Phase of flight: Roll-Out (Fixed Wing) - Operating rules: General operating rules (Part 91) - Location: 33.4305° N, 112.0096° W: From the FAA, an estimate near the named town, within about 3 miles - Nearby events: https://openairdocs.org/map.md?lat=33.4305&lon=-112.0096&mi=10 - Aircraft: N1557T, registered now (https://openairdocs.org/aircraft/N1557T) (OpenAirDocs) - Registry model: Cessna 414 (registry code 2075908, https://openairdocs.org/model/cessna-414) (OpenAirDocs) - Registry engine: Continental TSIO-520 series (registry code 17040, https://openairdocs.org/engine/continental-tsio-520-series) (OpenAirDocs) - Reported make and model: CESSNA 414 - Reported engine: CONT TSIO520J - People aboard: 1 - Fatal injuries: 0 - Pilot flight hours: 1,320 total, 40 in this make and model, 55 in the last 90 days - NTSB investigation: [NTSB LAX99LA097](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb/LAX99LA097) (OpenAirDocs) - FAA source: FAA Aviation Safety Information Portal (https://asip.faa.gov/) - Page: https://openairdocs.org/incident/19990215001359A ## Narrative As the FAA filed it, in capitals; the FAA replaces private details with ^PRIVACY DATA OMITTED^. ACFT LEFT MAIN LANDING GEAR COLLAPSED ON LANDING. (.19) ON FEBRUARY 15, 1999, AT 1143 HOURS MOUNTAIN STANDARD TIME, A CESSNA 414, N1557T, SUSTAINED SUBSTANTIAL DAMAGE WHEN THE LEFT MAIN GEAR COLLAPSED DURING TOUCHDOWN ON RUNWAY 26R AT PHOENIX SKY HARBOR AIRPORT, PHOENIX, ARIZONA. THE AIRCRAFT LOST CONTROL FOLLOWING THE GEAR COLLAPSE AND SUBSEQUENTLY STRUCK THREE SETS OF RUNWAY LIGHTS. THE PRIVATE PILOT/OWNER OF THE AIRCRAFT WAS NOT INJURED. THE AIRPLANE HAD DEPARTED SCOTTSDALE AIRPORT AT 1220 AND WAS EN ROUTE TO SKY HARBOR AIRPORT FOR ROUTINE MAINTENANCE. THE AIRCRAFT WAS BEING OPERATED UNDER CFR PART 91 OF THE FEDERAL AVIATION REGULATIONS WHEN THE ACCIDENT OCCURRED. VISUAL METEOROLOGICAL CONDITIONS PREVAILED AT THE TIME OF THE ACCIDENT AND A FLIGHT PLAN WAS NOT FILED FOR THE FLIGHT. THE PILOT TOLD SAFETY BOARD INVESTIGATORS THAT THE AIRPLANE HAD JUST HAD THE BUSHINGS ON THE LANDING GEAR REPLACED APPROXIMATELY 8 HOURS BEFORE THE DATE OF THE ACCIDENT. (.4)THE PILOT LANDED ON RUNWAY 26R WITH THREE GREEN LANDING GEAR DOWN INDICATOR LIGHTS. HE SAID THAT THE AIRPLANE SEEMED TO ROLL NORMALLY DOWN THE CENTERLINE FOR APPROXIMATELY 200 FEET, THEN THE LEFT LANDING GEAR COLLAPSED AND THE AIRPLANE SUBSEQUENTLY VEERED OFF THE RUNWAY AND STRUCK TAXIWAY LIGHTS. POSTACCIDENT INVESTIGATION OF THE AIRPLANE REVEALED THAT THE ATTACHMENT LOCATION OF THE LEFT MAIN LANDING GEAR FOR THE DOWNLOCK BELLCRANK WAS SEPARATED AND THE ATTACHMENT BOLT WAS SHEARED. ADDITIONALLY, THERE WAS A SIGNIFICANT DIFFERENCE IN THE DOWNLOCK TENSION ADJUSTMENT OF THE LANDING GEAR COMPONENTS OF THE LEFT SIDE VERSUS THE RIGHT SIDE OF THE AIRPLANE. SYSTEM RIGGING OF THE LANDING GEAR REQUIRES ADJUSTMENTS TO THE FORK BOLT AND THE PUSH-PULL TUBE, WHICH MUST BE MADE TOGETHER AND IN THE SAME AMOUNT IN OPPOSITE DIRECTIONS. THE FAILED COMPONENTS WERE TESTED FOR CHEMICAL COMPOSITION AND HARDNESS AND ALL MET THEIR MATERIAL SPECIFICATIONS. METALLURGICAL EXAMINATION OF THE PARTS DISCLOSED THAT ALL FRACTURES AND BENDS WERE A DIRECT RESULT OF AN OVERLOAD EVENT. MAINTENANCE RECORDS ESTABLISHED THAT A RE-RIGGING WAS PERFORMED ON THE AIRPLANE FOLLOWING THE MAINTENANCE WORK ON THE LANDI NG GEAT SYSTEM 10 DAYS AND 11 FLIGHT HOURS PRIOR TO THE ACCIDENT. (-23)LANDED 26R AT PHX. TOUCHED DOWN AT 110 TO 115 MPH. ON FINAL HAD FULL FLAPS AND NORMAL DOWN AND LOCKED INDICATION FOR ALL THREE LANDING GEAR. OM LANDING AFTER APPROXIMATELY 200 AT 300 FOOT ROLLOUT AND AT AN ESTIMATED SPEED OF 90 TO 100 MPH THE PILOT STARTED TO RAISE THE FLAPS. WHILE RAISING THE FLAPS THE PLANE SUNK DOWN INTO THE LEFT WING. AS SOON AS THE LEFT PROP HIT THE GROUND THE PILOT SHUT DOWN THE LEFT ENGINE. AT THIS POINT THE ESTIMATED SPEED WAS 80 TO 90 MPH. AFTER SLIDING APPROXIMATELY 2,000 FEET THE LEFT WING STRUCK THREE TAXI WAY LIGHTS, ONE OF WHICH PUNCTURES THE WING. THE LEFT WING SKIDDED THROUGH A GRAVEL AREA CAUSING THE PLANE TO ROTATE 90 DEGREES TO THE LEFT AND COME TO REST WITH THE TAIL POINTING TOWARD THE RUNWAY. ## The NTSB's investigation of this event (1) From the NTSB's public API. Aircraft are matched to registry aircraft by N-number and event date, checked against the reported serial number, make and model; the registry's history has gaps, so older matches can be wrong. Compare the reported make and model. - [NTSB LAX99LA097](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb/LAX99LA097), Feb 15, 1999: Cessna 414 (N1557T), Phoenix, AZ, substantial damage. Probable cause: The overload failure of the left main gear locking mechanism due to improper system rigging by maintenance personnel. 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. --- OpenAirDocs.org is an independent research project of [Contrail Labs](https://contraillabs.com/). It is not affiliated with the FAA or the NTSB. Source documents are U.S. government works in the public domain.