# Incident 20150921023009I: Piper PA-28R-201T, Butler, PA, September 21, 2015

- Type: FAA incident report (Accident/Incident Data System), as reported
- Date: September 21, 2015, 19:15 local time
- Place: Butler, PA
- Airport: Butler County/K W Scholter Fie
- Damage: Minor damage
- Phase of flight: Landing: Approach
- Operating rules: General operating rules (Part 91)
- Location: 40.8616° N, 79.8962° W: Placed by OpenAirDocs: center of Butler, PA, within about 6 miles (OpenAirDocs)
- Nearby events: https://openairdocs.org/map.md?lat=40.8616&lon=-79.8962&mi=10
- Aircraft: N313EM, registered now (https://openairdocs.org/aircraft/N313EM) (OpenAirDocs)
- Registry model: Piper PA-28R-201T (registry code 7102813, https://openairdocs.org/model/piper-pa-28r-201t) (OpenAirDocs)
- Registry engine: Continental TSIO-360 series (registry code 17019, https://openairdocs.org/engine/continental-tsio-360-series) (OpenAirDocs)
- Reported make and model: PIPER PA-28R-201T
- Reported engine: CONT MOTOR TSIO-360 SER
- People aboard: 2
- Fatal injuries: 0
- Other injuries: 0
- FAA source: FAA Aviation Safety Information Portal (https://asip.faa.gov/)
- Page: https://openairdocs.org/incident/20150921023009I

## Narrative

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

THE PILOT^PRIVACY DATA OMITTED^AND ONE PASSENGER WERE RETURNING TO BUTLER ON 9/21/2015 FOR A PLEASURE FLIGHT. UPON APPROACH TO BUTLER AIRPORT ON RUNWAY 21 THE PILOT PLACED THE GEAR IN THE DOWN POSITION AND DID NOT RECEIVE A DOWN AND LOCKED INDICATION. AFTER MANY ATTEMPTS TO LOWER THE GEAR (NORMAL AND EMERGENCY) AND FLY BYS FOR VERIFICATION OF THE SITUATION, THE PILOT ELECTED TO LAND THE AIRCRAFT WITH THE GEAR UP.

REPORTS WERE RECEIVED FROM THE PILOT AND A CERTIFICATED MECHANIC THAT DURING THE REMOVAL OF THE AIRCRAFT FROM THE RUNWAY THE NOSE GEAR TENSION SPRINGS WERE BOTH FOUND DISCONNECTED AT THE BOTTOM NOSE GEAR SPRING ARM. THIS ASSEMBLY ALONG WITH THE HYDRAULIC SYSTEM ASSISTS THE NOSE GEAR INTO THE DOWN AND LOCKED POSITION. DAMAGE TO THE AIRCRAFT WAS LIMITED TO THE RIGHT WING STEP, INBOARD AFT TRAILING EDGE OF THE LEFT FLAP, THE LEFT OUTBOARD HAT RAIL ASSEMBLY, FUSELAGE ANTENNAS, LEFT WING TO FUSELAGE ATTACHMENT BOLT THREADS AND NUTS, BOTH PROPELLER TIPS, AND ONE END OF BOTH NOSE GEAR TENSION SPRINGS WERE  STRETCHED.

ON 9/23/2015, INSPECTION OF THE AIRCRAFT?S LANDING GEAR REVEALED THE SPRINGS WERE DEFORMED AND THE HYDRAULIC SYSTEM MAY HAVE BEEN WEAK. WITH THE DEFORMED SPRINGS CONNECTED THE SYSTEM PERFORMED CORRECTLY. SPRING TENSIONS COULD NOT BE DETERMINED AT THAT TIME. WITH THE SPRINGS DISCONNECTED THE NOSE GEAR COULD EASILY BE HELD BACK FROM THE OVER CENTER DOWN AND LOCKED POSITION.

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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