# Incident 20110829017799I: Cessna 402C, San Juan, PR, August 29, 2011

- Type: FAA incident report (Accident/Incident Data System), as reported
- Date: August 29, 2011, 15:26 local time
- Place: San Juan, PR
- Airport: Luis Munoz Marin International
- Damage: Minor damage
- Phase of flight: Cruise/Level Flight
- Operating rules: Air taxi and commuter (Part 135)
- Operator: RSHA
- Location: 18.4394° N, 66.0021° W: Placed by OpenAirDocs at LUIS MUNOZ MARIN INTL (SJU), within about a mile (OpenAirDocs)
- Nearby events: https://openairdocs.org/map.md?lat=18.4394&lon=-66.0021&mi=10
- Aircraft: N603AB, a cancelled registration (https://openairdocs.org/deregistered/N603AB-2019-09-06) (OpenAirDocs)
- Registry model: Cessna 402C (registry code 207590R, https://openairdocs.org/model/cessna-402c) (OpenAirDocs)
- Reported make and model: CESSNA 402C
- People aboard: 3
- Fatal injuries: 0
- Other injuries: 0
- FAA source: FAA Aviation Safety Information Portal (https://asip.faa.gov/)
- Page: https://openairdocs.org/incident/20110829017799I

## Narrative

As the FAA filed it, in capitals; the FAA replaces private details with ^PRIVACY DATA OMITTED^.

ON AUGUST 29, 2011, FEDERAL AVIATION ADMINISTRATION (FAA) SOUTH FLORIDA FLIGHT STANDARDS DISTRICT OFFICE (FSDO) SAN FACILITY AVIATION SAFETY INSPECTOR (ASI) JOAQUIN PUNTONET WAS CONDUCTING AN "R" ITEM ENROUTE INSPECTION ON AIR SUNSHINE FLIGHT #412.  THE FLIGHT WAS SCHEDULED TO OPERATE FROM SAN JUAN INTERNATIONAL AIRPORT (SJU) TO VIEQUES PUERTO RICO. IN ACCORDANCE WITH ^PRIVACY DATA OMITTED^ STATEMENT, AND LATER CONFIRMED WITH PILOT, ^PRIVACY DATA OMITTED^ DURING AN INTERVIEW, THE FLIGHT DEPARTED SJU WITHOUT INCIDENT. HOWEVER, APPROXIMATELY  15.5 MILES SOUTHEAST OF SJU AND ABOUT 2.5 MILES NORTH OF FAJARDO AIR FIELD (WHICH IS NOW A CLOSED AIR FIELD), FAA ASI ^PRIVACY DATA OMITTED^ NOTICED THAT BOTH HYDRAULIC WARNING LIGHTS WERE FLICKERING ON AND OFF.  THEREAFTER, SMOKE APPEARED IN THE COCKPIT FROM UNDERNEATH THE PILOT'S INSTRUMENT PANEL.  THE PILOT OPENED THE DV WINDOWS AND WHAT APPEARED TO BE SMOKE FLOWED OUT OF THE COCKPIT.  THE PILOT THEN DECIDED TO IMMEDIATELY LAND IN FAJARDO AIR FIELD DUE TO THE EMERGENCY.  HOWEVER, WHEN THE PILOT ATTEMPTED TO LOWER THE LANDING GEAR, THE NOSE LANDING WOULD NOT INDICATE DOWN AND LOCK.  THE PILOT DECIDED TO GO BACK TO SAN JUAN INTERNATIONAL AIRPORT WHERE THERE WAS EMERGENCY SERVICE AVAILABLE.  THE PILOT DECLARED AN EMERGENCY TO SAN JUAN APPROACH CONTROL AND CONDUCTED A LOW PASS OVER RUNWAY 10 TO DETERMINE WHETHER THE LANDING GEARS WERE DOWN AND LOCKED.  THE PILOT WAS INFORMED THAT THE MAIN LANDING GEAR APPEARED DOWN AND LOCKED, BUT THE NOSE GEAR WAS NOT LOCKED.  PILOT DECIDED TO LAND ON RUNWAY 10 WITH THE MAIN LANDING GEAR LOCKED AND NOSE GEAR INDICATING UNLOCKED AFTER PILOT ATTEMPTED SEVERAL TIMES TO USED EMERGENCY LANDING GEAR EXTENTION PROCEDURES ( DEPLOYMENT NITROGEN BOTTLE) AND FAILED. PILOT LANDED IN SJU RUNWAY 10 WITH A COLLAPSED NOSE GEAR.  EMERGENCY VEHICLE RESPONDED IMMEDIATELY AND ALL PASSENGERS PROCEEDED TO EXIT THE AIRCRAFT IN A SAFE MATTER.  NO ONE WAS INJURED.ON AUGUST 30, 2011, AIWORTHINESS INSPECTOR, ^PRIVACY DATA OMITTED^ AND ^PRIVACY DATA OMITTED^, FROM FSDO-19, SAN JUAN FACILITY, CONDUCTED AN ON SITE INVESTIGATION. THE INVESTIGATION REVEALED THAT THE HYDRAULIC FLUID RESERVOIR SIGHT GAGE HAD TO SMALL HOLES, CAUSING HYDRAULIC FLUID LOSS. DUE TO THE LEAK AND LACK OF HYDRAULIC FLUID THE NOSE GEAR WAS UNABLE TO FULLY EXTEND AND LOCK. AN EXAMINATION OF THE EMERGENCY SYSTEM BOTTLE REVEALED THAT THE NITROGEN WAS NOT RELEASED.AS PART OF THE INVESTIGATION A TROUBLESHOOTING OF THE LANDING GEAR SYSTEM WAS PERFORMED BY AIR SUNSHINE PERSONNEL, AND OBSERVED BY INSPECTOR, ^PRIVACY DATA OMITTED^ AND ^PRIVACY DATA OMITTED^. THE SIGHT GAGE WAS REPLACED, THE HYDRAULIC SYSTEM SERVICED, AND THE GEAR WAS CYCLE COUPLE OF TIME WITH SATISFACTORY RESULTS. ALSO, THE EMERGENCY SYSTEM WAS ACTIVATED AND THE NITROGEN WAS RELEASED AND THE LANDING GEAR EXTENDED AND LOCKED. DURING THE LANDING GEAR SYSTEM TROUBLESHOOTING WE ENCOUNTERED NO FUMES OR SMOKE.

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.

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