# Incident 20181222021989I: Piper PA-31-350, Mount Vernon, IL, December 22, 2018

- Type: FAA incident report (Accident/Incident Data System), as reported
- Date: December 22, 2018, 12:30 local time
- Place: Mount Vernon, IL
- Damage: Minor damage
- Phase of flight: Landing: Touchdown
- Operating rules: General operating rules (Part 91)
- Location: 38.3142° N, 88.9175° W: Placed by OpenAirDocs: center of Mount Vernon, IL, within about 6 miles (OpenAirDocs)
- Nearby events: https://openairdocs.org/map.md?lat=38.3142&lon=-88.9175&mi=10
- Aircraft: N3556F, a cancelled registration (https://openairdocs.org/deregistered/N3556F-2023-11-13) (OpenAirDocs)
- Registry model: Piper PA-31-350 (registry code 7103110, https://openairdocs.org/model/piper-pa-31-350) (OpenAirDocs)
- Reported make and model: PIPER PA-31-350
- People aboard: 1
- Fatal injuries: 0
- Other injuries: 0
- Pilot certificates: Commercial pilot
- Pilot flight hours: 2,369 total, 650 in this make and model, 3 in the last 90 days
- FAA source: FAA Aviation Safety Information Portal (https://asip.faa.gov/)
- Page: https://openairdocs.org/incident/20181222021989I

## Narrative

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

ON DECEMBER 22, 2018 AT APPROXIMATELY 12:30 CENTRAL SAVINGS TIME (CST), A PIPER PA-31-350 AIRCRAFT, N3556F, REGISTERED TO AND OPERATED BY A COMMERCIAL PILOT, RECEIVED MINOR DAMAGE WHEN IT LANDED ON RUNWAY 23 AT MOUNT VERNON (KMVN) WITH THE LANDING GEAR RETRACTED.

THIS WAS THE FIRST FLIGHT BE PERFORMED, AFTER THE AIRCRAFT HAD BEEN UNDER GOING EXTENSIVE MAINTENANCE FOR THE PREVIOUS 3 MONTHS.

THE PILOT WAS IN THE PROCESS OF DOING THE FIRST LANDING AND TAKEOFF OF 3, WHEN HE REALIZED THAT THE LANDING GEAR WAS NOT EXTENDED AND LOCKED. HE CONTINUED TO FLY THE AIRCRAFT FOR APPROXIMATELY 3 HOURS, AND IN THAT TIME WAS CONTINOUSLY TRYING TO EMERGENCY EXTEND THE LANDING GEAR WITHOUT ANY SUCCESS. AFTER BURNING ALMOST ALL THE FUEL OUT OF THE TANKS, HE DECIDED TO LAND THE AIRCRAFT ON ITS BELLY AT THE AIRPORT.

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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