20050112004409I

Incident · Minor damage

FAA incident report · Piper PA-23-250 · Indianapolis, IN · January 12, 2005

Date: January 12, 2005 · 20:50 local
Place: Indianapolis, IN
Airport: Indianapolis International
Phase of flight: Level Off Touchdown
Operating rules: Air taxi and commuter (Part 135)
Operator: CYQA
Damage: Minor damage
Aircraft: N63764
Reported as: Piper PA23250
People aboard: 2
Fatal injuries: 0
Pilot’s flight hours: 2,268 total632 in this make and model242 in the last 90 days

N63764Registration cancelled May 1, 2020 · Piper PA-23-250S/N 27-7754097 Airframe modelPiper PA-23-250 Engine modelLycoming IO-540-C4B5Reciprocating

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.

(-23) On landing the left main landing gear collapsed. Inspection of the aircraft revealed that the left main landing gear drag link assembly separated between upper link assembly p/n 16190-00 and lower assembly p/n 16240-05. The main landing gear center drag link attach bolt p/n 402-427 (AN177-27) had failed in the center of the bolt shank. Inspection of the bolt indicated that age and fatigue of the bolt were a factor in the bolt failure. The bolt fracture indicated that 75% of the fracture was present prior to the bolt failure. The aircraft left flap sustained damage from the left main landing gear and tire traveling aft of the normal operating range due to the gear collapsing. The left propeller blades sustained damage from contacting the runway. The damage sustained indicated that the aircraft was at a low speed and the engine at a low power setting at the time of the landing gear collapse.

As the FAA filed it

(-23) ON LANDING THE LEFT MAIN LANDING GEAR COLLAPSED. INSPECTION OF THE AIRCRAFT REVEALED THAT THE LEFT MAIN LANDING GEAR DRAG LINK ASSEMBLY SEPARATED BETWEEN UPPER LINK ASSEMBLY P/N 16190-00 AND LOWER ASSEMBLY P/N 16240-05. THE MAIN LANDING GEAR CENTER DRAG LINK ATTACH BOLT P/N 402-427 (AN177-27) HAD FAILED IN THE CENTER OF THE BOLT SHANK. INSPECTION OF THE BOLT INDICATED THAT AGE AND FATIGUE OF THE BOLT WERE A FACTOR IN THE BOLT FAILURE. THE BOLT FRACTURE INDICATED THAT 75% OF THE FRACTURE WAS PRESENT PRIOR TO THE BOLT FAILURE. THE AIRCRAFT LEFT FLAP SUSTAINED DAMAGE FROM THE LEFT MAIN LANDING GEAR AND TIRE TRAVELING AFT OF THE NORMAL OPERATING RANGE DUE TO THE GEAR COLLAPSING. THE LEFT PROPELLER BLADES SUSTAINED DAMAGE FROM CONTACTING THE RUNWAY. THE DAMAGE SUSTAINED INDICATED THAT THE AIRCRAFT WAS AT A LOW SPEED AND THE ENGINE AT A LOW POWER SETTING AT THE TIME OF THE LANDING GEAR COLLAPSE.