- Date
- June 28, 2003, 13:47 local (19:47 UTC)
- Place
- Ogden, UT
- Injuries
- 2 uninjured
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Phase of flight
- Landing
- Aircraft
- N8547PPiper PA-24-260
- Weather
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Status
- Completed · report November 25, 2003
- Report
- Approved by Office Director
- Parties
- Federal Aviation Administration
- FAA report
- 20030628013279A
- Case key
- 57462
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 failure of the landing gear retraction/extension assembly due to the improper rigging of the landing gear.
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 said he had just taken off. During the climb, he noticed that the landing gear indicator did not indicate up and locked. The pilot reported that he cycled the gear, but still did not have the up and locked indication. The airplane landed and rolled approximately 300 feet when the gear collapsed, causing substantial damage to a bulkhead, the engine mounts, firewall, and propeller. The pilot said the landing gear might have been rigged improperly. An examination of the landing gear system showed the system was rigged improperly resulting in the inability of the locking mechanism to hold the gear in the up and locked or down and locked positions. The landing gear motor brakes showed excessive wear. No other anomalies were found. A review of the airplane's logbook showed that the landing gear had undergone extensive maintenance approximately 30 hours prior to the accident.
Factual narrative
On June 28, 2003, at 1347 mountain daylight time, a Piper PA-24-260, N8547P, piloted by the private pilot, was substantially damaged during landing at the Ogden-Hinckley Airport (OGD), Ogden, Utah. Visual meteorological conditions prevailed at the time of the accident. The personal flight was being conducted under the provisions of Title 14 CFR Part 91 without a flight plan. The pilot and passenger on board the airplane reported no injuries. The local flight originated approximately 1320.
According to the pilot, he had just taken off from OGD. During the climb, he noticed that the landing gear indicator did not indicate up and locked. The pilot reported that he cycled the gear, but still did not have the up and locked indication. The pilot elected to return to OGD and land. The airplane landed and rolled approximately 300 feet when the gear collapsed.
A Federal Aviation Administration inspector examined the airplane at OGD. The bottom fuselage skin was scraped aft through to the bulkhead and ribs. One of the bulkheads was scraped aft and bent. The engine mounts were broken upward and the firewall was buckled. The inboard trailing edges of both wing flaps were scrapped. The propeller blades showed torsional bending and chordwise scratches. Flight control continuity was confirmed.
According to the pilot, the landing gear might have been rigged improperly. An examination of the landing gear system showed the system was rigged improperly resulting in the inability of the locking mechanism to hold the gear in the up and locked or down and locked positions. The landing gear motor brakes showed excessive wear. An examination of the engine, engine controls, and other airplane systems revealed no anomalies.
An airframe and powerplant mechanic who examined the system said that the motor had been holding the landing gear in position.
A review of the airplane's logbook showed that the landing gear had undergone extensive maintenance approximately 30 hours prior to the accident.
Aircraft
- Registration
- N8547P
- Reported as
- Piper PA-24-260
- Category
- Airplane
- Serial number
- 24-4004
- Airframe hours
- 4,172
- Engine
- Lycoming IO-540-D4A5, 260 horsepower, reciprocating
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Personal · Part 91
- Registered owner
- Alan Thompson
- Airworthiness certificate
- Standard, Normal
- Last inspection
- Annual · September 15, 2002 · 30 hours before
- Departed
- OGD · Ogden, UT
- Airport
- OGD · Odgen-Hinkley Airport, runway 25, 5,590 × 150 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
- 52
- Injuries
- None
- Certificate
- Private
- Airplane ratings
- Single-engine land
- Medical
- Class 3, Valid Medical--w/ waivers/lim
- Last flight review
- January 29, 2003
- Seat
- Left
- Flight hours
- 1,162 total · 600 in this make and model · 1,104 as pilot in command · 14 in the last 90 days
Weather
- Conditions
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Wind
- 260° at 6 knots
- Visibility
- 10 statute miles
- Lowest ceiling
- None
- Temperature
- 84 °F, dew point 36 °F
- Altimeter
- 30.07 inHg
- Observed at
- OGD, 1 nm away
FAA reports on this event · 1
The FAA’s own accident and incident reports, matched to the aircraft by N-number and date.