20100407032999I

Incident · Minor damage

FAA incident report · Mooney M20B · Spanish Fork, UT · April 7, 2010

Date
April 7, 2010 · 15:30 local
Place
Spanish Fork, UT
Airport
Spanish Fork-Springville
Phase of flight
Landing: Touchdown
Operating rules
General operating rules (Part 91)
Damage
Minor damage
Aircraft
N74722
Reported as
Mooney M20B
Reported engine
Lycoming O&VO-360 series
People aboard
2
Fatal injuries
0
Other injuries
0
Pilot’s certificate
Private pilot
Pilot’s flight hours
435 total180 in this make and model60 in the last 90 days

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.

The pilot stated that he became distracted due to his efforts to visually acquire the three helicopters(R-22'S) in the airport traffic pattern with him, while communicating his position and intentions on CTAF. The pilot remembers initiating landing gear extension, but does not remember completing the extension process by locking the "johnson bar" in the landing gear down position. The pilot stated that upon landing touch down, all seemed normal, then there was a clunking noise, the aircraft dropped onto the runway surface and began skidding on its belly, eventually coming to rest in the dirt just off the north side of runway 30.

As the FAA filed it

THE PILOT STATED THAT HE BECAME DISTRACTED DUE TO HIS EFFORTS TO VISUALLY ACQUIRE THE THREE HELICOPTERS(R-22'S) IN THE AIRPORT TRAFFIC PATTERN WITH HIM, WHILE COMMUNICATING HIS POSITION AND INTENTIONS ON CTAF. THE PILOT REMEMBERS INITIATING LANDING GEAR EXTENSION, BUT DOES NOT REMEMBER COMPLETING THE EXTENSION PROCESS BY LOCKING THE "JOHNSON BAR" IN THE LANDING GEAR DOWN POSITION. THE PILOT STATED THAT UPON LANDING TOUCH DOWN, ALL SEEMED NORMAL, THEN THERE WAS A CLUNKING NOISE, THE AIRCRAFT DROPPED ONTO THE RUNWAY SURFACE AND BEGAN SKIDDING ON ITS BELLY, EVENTUALLY COMING TO REST IN THE DIRT JUST OFF THE NORTH SIDE OF RUNWAY 30.