20011003037319A

(-23) On October 3, 2001, prior to landing at dfw and following gear extension a message appeared on the mfdu indicating the nose landing gear was unsafe. After determining the gear was extended the crew declared an emergency and landed at dfw uneventfully. After coming to a full stop on the runway, maintenance arrived and prepared to tow the aircraft. Numerous cautions in the AFM, mm, and placards located on the nose gear door warn personnel of a nose gear collapse if the message is present on the mfdu indicating an unsafe gear and not to tow. Maintenance personnel were not given enough information prior to being dispatched to properly assess the actions that should have been taken. The captain informed maintenance that he thought a strap was required to secure the gear before moving the aircraft, but maintenance personnel at the aircraft were in communication with a supervisor who was looking in the mm for special nose landing gear securing procedures, and he reported twice that he could not find a strapping requirement, hence the tow was commended. As soon as the aircraft brakes were released the nose gear collapsed because the downlock plunger was not engaged into the downlock.