20240307002869A

On March 7, 2024, at approximately 1300, a Piper PA-24, took off from Stafford regional airport (krmn) VA and flew to shannon airport (kezf) VA. After refueling, the aircraft took off from kezf for tangier island airport (ktgi) VA. On approach to ktgi, the pilot completed his prelanding checklist which consisted of ensuring the gas was on the fullest tank, landing gear down and locked, and aircraft configured for a go around procedure. At the time, AWOS for ktgi was reporting a left quartering headwind of 320 degrees at 12 knots. As the pilot was landing on runway 02 there was an indication of a crosswind from the north/northwest, so the pilot made a slight correction to the left and touched down on the left main landing gear and for the first few seconds, the aircraft maintained centerline and responded appropriately. After this, the airplane veered abruptly to the right side of the runway so the pilot instinctively executed an immediate go around. Once the airplane was sufficiently climbing, the pilot retracted the first and second notch of flaps and then attempted to retract the gear. At that point the landing gear would not retract. The pilot noticed that the gear motor circuit breaker had popped and that the gear was stuck in transit. After reaching a safe altitude, the pilot contacted his flight instructor who immediatley directed him to a local mechanic based at krmn. The local mechanic was contacted to discuss a plan to manually lower the landing gear upon returning to krmn. As the aircraft entered the pattern at krmn, the pilot contacted both the mechanic and the airport manager and proceeded to make a couple of low passes to facilitate a visual instection of the landing gear. After the low passes were completed, the pilot was advised to execute a manual gear extension. After the manual gear extension was complete, the aircraft made a low approach to krmn. The left main landing gear was observed down and locked while the right main and nose gears were not down and fully locked. Since the aircraft had more than 20 gallons of fuel remaining, the aircraft was directed to hold in the pattern in order burn off some fuel and possibly free the landing gear by using the manual gear extension and exerting pressure by rocking the aircraft from side to side. During the downwind leg of the final lap the pilot used the emergency checklist in order to prepare the aircraft for landing. The pilot set up the aircraft best glide, fuel selector switch to off, mixture control to close, and unlatched the aircraft door in preparation for emergency egress. The aircraft touched down on the left main gear first keeping the aircraft level, but ultimatley the gear collapsed. After the aircraft came to a complete stop, the pilot and one passenger evacuated the aircraft. The single pilot and one passenger sustained no injuries. At that time the Virginia state police and FAA were notified.

An inspection of the aircraft revealed a propeller strike, left main landing gear damage, right main landing gear damage including a broken linkage, nose gear damage, and substantial structural damage to the under carriage of the fuselage. Additionally, a closer inspection of the landing gear components including the broken linkage revealed rusted/corroded components. All inspections were current as of March 7, 2024. There was a previous landing gear issue that was corrected prior to the accident.