20221006020479I

Incident · Minor damage

FAA incident report · Beech E-55 · Asheville, NC · October 6, 2022

Date
October 6, 2022 · 17:30 local
Place
Asheville, NC
Airport
Asheville Regional
Phase of flight
Landing: Touchdown
Operating rules
General operating rules (Part 91)
Damage
Minor damage
Aircraft
N630RW
Reported as
Beech E-55
Reported engine
Continental IO-520 series
People aboard
2
Fatal injuries
0
Other injuries
0
Pilot’s certificate
Private pilot
Pilot’s flight hours
686 total126 in this make and model36 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.

Pilot statement: I was cleared for runway. Had my gear down and green light and indicator on floor. VFR day calm stable approach. Touched down just short of the captain's bars. About 200 yards past captain's bars felt a bump then another. Then heard a screeching sound. Plane came to a stop just right of center line and out of corner of my eye I saw prop tip bent. Turned off master switch and fuel and got out of the plane.

The investigation of pictures from the kavl airport personnel and the pilot showed the gear handle in the down position. The inner main gear doors were bent and folded under the main gear tires. There was minor damage to the aircraft. The kavl airport provided videos of the landing from several angles. The videos were grainy and did not provide close-up footage. I was unable to determine if the gear was down in any of the videos. One of the videos from a gate camera did appear to corroborate the pilot’s description of events. You cannot see the gear, but the video appears to show the aircraft very low to the runway and the nose suddenly drops followed by the right and then the left main gear. In discussions with the NTSB, the pilot’s insurance adjuster and Textron the consensus is that the evidence of the main landing gear doors being under the wheels means that the gear was not down, or it was retracted during the landing phase. I watched detailed videos of the landing gear systems videos done by the privacy data omitted and I agree with the other subject matter experts that the pilot did either not put the gear down or he raised it. The very first action after selecting the gear in either the down or the up position is that the main inner gear doors move 1st. This is the only way the doors could end up under the main wheels. The pilot insists that he had the gear down and noted 2 gear (g.u.m.p.s) checks and verified this by looking at the green indicator light.

As the FAA filed it

PILOT STATEMENT: I WAS CLEARED FOR RUNWAY. HAD MY GEAR DOWN AND GREEN LIGHT AND INDICATOR ON FLOOR. VFR DAY CALM STABLE APPROACH. TOUCHED DOWN JUST SHORT OF THE CAPTAIN'S BARS. ABOUT 200 YARDS PAST CAPTAIN'S BARS FELT A BUMP THEN ANOTHER. THEN HEARD A SCREECHING SOUND. PLANE CAME TO A STOP JUST RIGHT OF CENTER LINE AND OUT OF CORNER OF MY EYE I SAW PROP TIP BENT. TURNED OFF MASTER SWITCH AND FUEL AND GOT OUT OF THE PLANE.

THE INVESTIGATION OF PICTURES FROM THE KAVL AIRPORT PERSONNEL AND THE PILOT SHOWED THE GEAR HANDLE IN THE DOWN POSITION. THE INNER MAIN GEAR DOORS WERE BENT AND FOLDED UNDER THE MAIN GEAR TIRES. THERE WAS MINOR DAMAGE TO THE AIRCRAFT. THE KAVL AIRPORT PROVIDED VIDEOS OF THE LANDING FROM SEVERAL ANGLES. THE VIDEOS WERE GRAINY AND DID NOT PROVIDE CLOSE-UP FOOTAGE. I WAS UNABLE TO DETERMINE IF THE GEAR WAS DOWN IN ANY OF THE VIDEOS. ONE OF THE VIDEOS FROM A GATE CAMERA DID APPEAR TO CORROBORATE THE PILOT’S DESCRIPTION OF EVENTS. YOU CANNOT SEE THE GEAR, BUT THE VIDEO APPEARS TO SHOW THE AIRCRAFT VERY LOW TO THE RUNWAY AND THE NOSE SUDDENLY DROPS FOLLOWED BY THE RIGHT AND THEN THE LEFT MAIN GEAR. IN DISCUSSIONS WITH THE NTSB, THE PILOT’S INSURANCE ADJUSTER AND TEXTRON THE CONSENSUS IS THAT THE EVIDENCE OF THE MAIN LANDING GEAR DOORS BEING UNDER THE WHEELS MEANS THAT THE GEAR WAS NOT DOWN, OR IT WAS RETRACTED DURING THE LANDING PHASE. I WATCHED DETAILED VIDEOS OF THE LANDING GEAR SYSTEMS VIDEOS DONE BY THE ^PRIVACY DATA OMITTED^ AND I AGREE WITH THE OTHER SUBJECT MATTER EXPERTS THAT THE PILOT DID EITHER NOT PUT THE GEAR DOWN OR HE RAISED IT. THE VERY FIRST ACTION AFTER SELECTING THE GEAR IN EITHER THE DOWN OR THE UP POSITION IS THAT THE MAIN INNER GEAR DOORS MOVE 1ST. THIS IS THE ONLY WAY THE DOORS COULD END UP UNDER THE MAIN WHEELS. THE PILOT INSISTS THAT HE HAD THE GEAR DOWN AND NOTED 2 GEAR (G.U.M.P.S) CHECKS AND VERIFIED THIS BY LOOKING AT THE GREEN INDICATOR LIGHT.