# Incident 20020512013369I: Piper PA28R200, Las Vegas, NV, May 12, 2002 - Type: FAA incident report (Accident/Incident Data System), as reported - Date: May 12, 2002, 13:30 local time - Place: Las Vegas, NV - Airport: North Las Vegas Air Terminal - Damage: Minor damage - Phase of flight: Level Off Touchdown - Operating rules: General operating rules (Part 91) - Location: 36.1750° N, 115.1372° W: Placed by OpenAirDocs: center of Las Vegas, NV, within about 7 miles (OpenAirDocs) - Nearby events: https://openairdocs.org/map.md?lat=36.1750&lon=-115.1372&mi=10 - Aircraft: N56903, a cancelled registration (https://openairdocs.org/deregistered/N56903-2018-01-25) (OpenAirDocs) - Registry model: Piper PA-28R-200 (registry code 7102811, https://openairdocs.org/model/piper-pa-28r-200) (OpenAirDocs) - Registry engine: Lycoming I0360 series (registry code 41515, https://openairdocs.org/engine/lycoming-i0360-series) (OpenAirDocs) - Reported make and model: PIPER PA28R200 - People aboard: 2 - Fatal injuries: 0 - Pilot flight hours: 991 total - FAA source: FAA Aviation Safety Information Portal (https://asip.faa.gov/) - Page: https://openairdocs.org/incident/20020512013369I ## Narrative As the FAA filed it, in capitals; the FAA replaces private details with ^PRIVACY DATA OMITTED^. (-23) 05-12-02: ON THE AFTERNOON OF SUNDAY, MAY 13, THIS PRIVATE PILOT AND PASSENGER WERE RETURNING TO NORTH LAS VEGAS AIRPORT AT THE CONCLUSION OF A VFR FLIGHT FROM BULLHEAD, AZ. THE ARRIVAL FOR RUNWAY 07 WAS NORMAL UNTIL THE AIRCRAFT WAS IN THE FLARE AT WHICH TIME THE PILOT REALIZED THE LANDING GEAR WERE NOT DOWN AND LOCKED. THE PILOT THOUGHT THE TAIL OF THE AIRCRAFT HAD MADE CONTACT, AND HE INITIATED A GO-AROUND. HE ASKED ATC TO VERIFY THE GEAR WAS DOWN AS HE FLEW BY AND PREPARED FOR ANOTHER APPROACH. ON THE WORD THE GEAR "APPEARED TO BE DOWN", HE MADE ANOTHER APPROACH TO THE RUNWAY WITH THE SAME RESULT, THIS TIME WITH THE IMPRESSION THAT THE PROPELLER MAY HAVE CONTACTED THE RUNWAY. THE PILOT CLIMBED AWAY FROM THE RUNWAY ENVIRONMENT AGAIN, AND WAS INSTRUCTED TO ORBIT OVER THE AIRPORT WHILE THE EMERGENCY EQUIPMENT WAS MOVED INTO PLACE. THE TOWER PUT HIM IN CONTACT WITH PERSONNEL OF THE FLIGHT SCHOOL FROM WHOM HE HAD RENTED THE AIRCRAFT. HE THEN FOLLOWED THEIR INSTRUCTIONS TO LEAVE THE AIRPORT TRAFFIC AREA AND PROCEEDED SOME 7-10 MILES NORTHWEST TO A VFR PRACTICE AREA. IN THE PRACTICE AREA HE WAS INSTRUCTED AS THE PROCEDURE FOR AN EMERGENCY GEAR EXTENSION. THE PILOT WAS ABLE TO GET "GREENS" ON THE MAIN GEAR ONLY, BUT DECIDED TO RETURN FOR LANDING IN THAT CONFIGURATION WHEN THE AIRPLANE BEGAN TO VIBRATE HEAVILY. THE NOSE GEAR ANNUNCIATOR DISPLAYED DOWN AND LOCKED AS THE PILOT MADE AN APPROACH FOR AN EMERGENCY LANDING ON RUNWAY 30. THE PILOT TAXIIED IN AS NORMAL, HOWEVER, THE PROPELLER TIPS WERE CURLED AFT 6-7 INCHES, THE TAIL TIE DOWN WAS GROUND DOWN ONE QUARTER INCH, AND THE RIGHT SIDE STEP SHOWED CONTACT WITH THE RUNWAY. THE MAIN TIRES WERE ABRAIDED OUTBOARD OF THE TREAD AREA AS IF THEY HAD BEEN APPLIED TO THE RUNWAY AT AN EXTREME ANGLE. THE GEAR DOORS WERE UNDAMAGED. MECHANICS LATER DETERMINED THAT THE ELECTRIC GEAR PUMP MOTOR WAS INOPERATIVE. NORTH LAS VEGAS AIR TRAFFIC CONTROL TOWER DID NOT REFER THIS EVENT TO FLIGHT STANDARDS AS AN INCIDENT. RATHER, IT WAS REPORTED TO ME BY THE CHIEF PILOT OF THE FLIGHT SCHOOL BY TELEPHONE, SAME DAY. THIS CHEROKEE ARROW HAS AN ELECTRICALLY CONTROLLED, HYDRAULICALLY ACTUATED RETRACTABLE GEAR SYSTEM. A UNIQUE FEATURE IS THAT THE LANDING GEAR WILL EXTEND AUTOMATICALLY IF THE PILOT FORGETS IT, AS A FUNCTION OF AIRSPEED AND THROTTLE POSITION. HOWEVER, THIS SYSTEM CAN BE OVERRIDDEN, OR DISABLED, DEPENDING ON THE POSITION OF A SMALL LEVER ON THE CONSOLE THAT HOUSES THE ELEVATOR TRIM (BETWEEN THE TWO FRONT SEATS). IN THIS CASE, THE GEAR MUST BE EXTENDED INTENTIONALLY IN THEUSUAL WAY. THE SUBJECT PILOT FLEW HIS TRIP AND RETURNED TO THE RUNWAY AT NORTH LAS VEGAS WITH THE AUTOMATIC SYSTEM DISABLED. NOTWITHSTANDING HIS REPRESENTATIONS TO THE CONTRARY, ON HIS ARRIVAL, HE EITHER FORGOT TO EXTEND THE GEAR, OR EXTENDED IT IN GROUND EFFECT. THE GEAR STOPPED AT ABOUT 45-50 DEGREES AND STAYED THERE UNTIL HE MANUALLY EXTENDED THE GEAR IN THE PRACTICE AREA. THE GEAR WAS IN THIS CONFIGURATION FOR THE FIRST TWO LANDING ATTEMPTS, EITHER BECAUSE THE MOTOR BURNED OUT ON THE FIRST EXTENSION, OR FAILED AS A RESULT OF BEING COUNTER-LOADED BY CONTACT WITH THE RUNWAY ON THE FIRST EXTENSION. ## Other reports on N56903 (2) Matched to the same aircraft by N-number and date. - [Incident 20080618834649I](https://openairdocs.org/incident/20080618834649I), Jun 18, 2008: Piper PA28R200 (N56903), Las Vegas, NV, Minor damage. (-23)While landing on runway 30L at vgt the aircraft pilots (CFI right seat and pilot working on commercial rating in left seat) state as the aircraft was… - [Incident 19880122004749I](https://openairdocs.org/incident/19880122004749I), Jan 22, 1988: Piper PA28R200 (N56903), Macon, GA, Minor damage. Making touch and go landings. Pilot landed with gear retracted. 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.