- Date
- April 22, 1993, 17:50 local (21:50 UTC)
- Place
- Port Huron, MI
- Injuries
- 2 uninjured
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Phase of flight
- Approach
- Aircraft
- N654NPiper PA-31-310
- Weather
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Status
- Completed · report July 25, 1994
- Report
- Approved by Office Director
- FAA report
- 19930422010559A
- Case key
- 9206
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
failure of the landing gear actuator cable.
Sequence of events
NTSB’s coding before 2008: each occurrence and phase of flight, and the causes and factors under it. The codes are defined in NTSB’s coding manual.
Analysis
The pilot attempted to extend the landing gear at his intended destination without success. He spent one and one-half hours in the landing pattern attempting to get the gear to extend, but was not successful. The pilot made an intentional gear-up landing. The investigation revealed the landing gear actuator cable had failed with the gear position actuating valve in the UP position.
Factual narrative
On April 22, 1993, at 1750 eastern daylight time, a Piper PA-31, N654N, sustained substantial damage in an intentional wheels up landing at the St. Clair County Airport, Port Huron, Michigan. The commercial pilot and the single passenger aboard the airplane were not injured. No flight plan was filed for the local flight, and visual meteorological conditions prevailed at the time.
The pilot reported he attempted to lower the landing gear upon his arrival at Port Huron, but the gear handle moved without resistance, and the landing gear stayed in the up position. The pilot and his passenger tried to get the landing gear down for one and one-half hours without success. The pilot elected to make an intentional gear-up landing.
The Federal Aviation Administration inspector who examined the airplane reported the landing gear actuator cable (P/N 55416-02) had failed. The gear position selector valve was in the UP position.
Aircraft
- Registration
- N654N
- Reported as
- Piper PA-31-310
- Category
- Airplane
- Serial number
- 31-683
- Airframe hours
- 6,860
- Engine
- Lycoming TIO-540-A2B, 310 horsepower, reciprocating
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Personal · Part 91
- Registered owner
- Evans Air Corp.
- Airworthiness certificate
- Standard, Normal
- Last inspection
- Annual · January 20, 1993 · 50 hours before
- Departed
- PTK · Pontiac, MI
- Airport
- PHN · St. Clair County Int'L, runway 4, 5,103 × 100 ft, asphalt
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
As NTSB recorded them. NTSB leaves out names.
- Role
- Pilot
- Age
- 47
- Certificate
- Commercial
- Airplane ratings
- Single-engine land, Multi-engine land
- Instrument ratings
- Airplane
- Medical
- Class 3, Valid Medical--w/ waivers/lim
- Seat
- Left
- Flight hours
- 3,625 total · 1,756 in this make and model · 3,510 as pilot in command · 44 in the last 90 days · 18 in the last 30 days · 5 in the last 24 hours
Weather
- Conditions
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Wind
- 40° at 19 knots
- Visibility
- 20 statute miles
- Lowest ceiling
- None
- Temperature
- 48 °F, dew point 30 °F
- Altimeter
- 29.00 inHg
- Observed at
- PHN
FAA reports on this event · 1
The FAA’s own accident and incident reports, matched to the aircraft by N-number and date.