CEN25LA402

NTSB accident investigation · Textron 525C · Baton Rouge, LA · September 25, 2025

Accident · No injuriesClass 4 · LimitedFinal report
Date
September 25, 2025, 18:25 local (23:25 UTC)
Place
Baton Rouge, LA
Injuries
2 uninjured
Damage
Substantial damage
Phase of flight
Landing
Aircraft
N361MBTextron 525C
Defining event
Landing: Landing gear collapse
Weather
Visual (VMC) · Day
Status
Completed · report December 11, 2025
Report
Approved by Office Director
Investigation class
Class 4 - Basic report with no Prelim publish
NTSB office
Central Region
Parties
Federal Aviation Administration, Baton Rouge FSDO
FAA report
20250925014999A
Case key
201748

From the NTSB’s public API. By law, NTSB reports can’t be used as evidence in lawsuits over the accident.

On this page

Probable cause

The improper installation of the trunnion pin, which resulted in a failure of the right main landing gear. Contributing to the accident was the failure of maintenance personnel to follow the aircraft manufacturer’s maintenance procedures.

Findings · 2

NTSB’s coded findings. Those marked are part of the probable cause; the rest are factors or other findings. Under each, the cases with the same finding.

Maintenance: installationPersonnel issues › Task performance · Maintenance personnelTextron 525C: 1 caseAll aircraft: 371 casesProbable cause
Landing gear system: main gear strut/axle/truckAircraft › Aircraft systems · Incorrect service/maintenanceTextron 525C: 1 caseAll aircraft: 86 casesProbable cause

Sequence of events

The events NTSB coded, in order, by phase of flight. The defining event is the one that best describes the accident. Under each, the cases with the same event anywhere in their sequence.

Analysis

About 10,000 ft mean sea level during a repositioning flight, the flight crew felt a bump/thud in the back of the airplane, which they thought was caused by something falling into the aisle from the lavatory. The flight crew observed that the landing gear unsafe light was illuminated. The flight crew stated that they followed emergency/abnormal airplane checklist items and reset the landing circuit breaker, which did not retract the landing gear. Then, the crew lowered the landing gear, which resulted in three green landing gear position lights. They continued the flight to the destination with the landing gear extended where they landed the airplane. During landing rollout and after applying moderate braking, they felt the right main landing gear collapse, which then punctured the right wing and resulted in substantial damage to right wing. Postaccident examination revealed the aft main landing gear trunnion pin for the right main landing gear was not properly installed during the recent maintenance as the aft trunnion pin was not installed far enough to allow the retaining roll pin to engage and retain the trunnion pin. The pilot reported and maintenance records showed that maintenance performed by the aircraft manufacturer’s service center, which included the reinstallation of the main landing gear trunnion pin, occurred 2.9 hours before the accident. According to the manufacturer’s maintenance manual installation procedures, maintenance personnel are required to make sure the aft end of the trunnion pin is at least 2.0 inches (50.8 mm) forward of the aft spar fitting to verify proper installation. The Civil Aviation Accident and Incident Investigation Commission (CIAIAC) of Spain investigated a similar accident that occurred on May 4, 2018, as documented in CIAIAC Report A-012/2018. As a result of the investigation, the aircraft manufacturer published a mandatory service letter (SL525C-32-12) to do an inspection of the aft main landing trunnion pins for proper installation.

Aircraft

Registration
N361MB
Reported as
Textron 525C
Category
Airplane
Serial number
525C0361
Built
2021
Airframe hours
1,484
Engines
Williams FJ44-4A, 3,621 lbs thrust, turbo fanWilliams FJ44-4A, 3,621 lbs thrust, turbo fan
Damage
Substantial damage
Flight
Positioning · Part 91
Operator
Pacifia LLC
Registered owner
Pacifia LLC
Airworthiness certificate
Standard, Normal
Last inspection
Annual · September 22, 2025 · 2.9 hours before
Departed
PNS · Pensacola, FL
Destination
Same as departure
Flight plan
IFR
Airport
BTR · Baton Rouge Metropolitan Airport, Ryan Field, runway 31, 7,005 × 150 ft, asphalt
Equipment
Onboard weather, Electronic primary flight display, Electronic multifunction display, Electronic flight bag or handheld device, Data recorder, Auto-pilot, Angle of attack indicator, ADS-B, Stall warning system

Matched to the registry by N-number and the event date; the registry’s history has gaps, so older matches can be wrong. Compare the reported make and model.

Flight crew · 2

As NTSB recorded them. NTSB leaves out names.

Role
Pilot
Age
50
Injuries
None
Certificates
Flight instructor, Airline transport
Airplane ratings
Single-engine land, Multi-engine land
Instrument ratings
Airplane
Medical
Class 1, Without waivers/limitations
Last flight review
September 13, 2025
Seat
Left
Restraint
4-point
Flight hours
14,000 total · 1,300 in this make and model · 13,000 as pilot in command · 35 in the last 90 days · 35 in the last 30 days · 0 in the last 24 hours
Role
Co-pilot
Age
22
Injuries
None
Certificates
Flight instructor, Airline transport, Commercial
Airplane ratings
Multi-engine land, Single-engine land
Instrument ratings
Airplane
Medical
Class 1, Without waivers/limitations
Last flight review
July 17, 2025
Seat
Right
Restraint
4-point
Flight hours
1,813 total · 396 in this make and model · 1,607 as pilot in command · 79 in the last 90 days · 8 in the last 30 days · 0 in the last 24 hours

Weather

Conditions
Visual (VMC) · Day
Wind
260° at 3 knots
Visibility
10 statute miles
Lowest ceiling
None
Temperature
82 °F, dew point 70 °F
Altimeter
29.89 inHg
Observed at
BRT

Docket · 7

The files NTSB released with the investigation on December 11, 2025, on NTSB’s docket system: statements, records, photos and specialists’ reports. 11.5 MB in all.

FAA reports on this event · 1

The FAA’s own accident and incident reports, matched to the aircraft by N-number and date.