ERA18LA182

The pilot was conducting an agricultural application flight. During the takeoff roll and before becoming fully airborne, the right main landing gear (MLG) “snapped,” followed by the right wing dropping and striking the runway. As the right wing and propeller dug into the turf, the airplane spun, departed the runway, and subsequently impacted hay bales before coming to rest. The fuselage and right wing were substantially damaged. Examination of the right steel spring MLG revealed that it had broken off cleanly at the wheel and displayed features that were indicative of a fatigue failure. No maintenance records were available for examination, and the service history of the right MLG could not be determined.

On June 30, 2018, about 1045 central daylight time, a Piper PA-25, N6307Z, was substantially damaged when it was involved in an accident at Leon’s Landing Airport (4AL7), Flat Rock, Alabama. The pilot was not injured. The airplane was operated as a 14 Code of Federal Regulations Part 137 agricultural flight. According to the pilot, at takeoff, the airplane had 120 gallons of chemicals and 30 gallons of fuel onboard. During the takeoff roll about 40 mph, the tail lifted off the turf runway. When the airplane reached 65 mph, the right main landing gear (MLG) “snapped,” and the right wing to dropped and struck the runway. As the right wing and propeller dug into the turf, the airplane spun, departed the runway, and subsequently impacted hay bales before coming to rest. Postaccident examination of the airplane revealed that the fuselage aft of the cockpit was twisted and wrinkled, the right wing leading edge was crushed, and the right steel spring MLG was collapsed. Examination of the right MLG revealed that it had broken off cleanly near where it attached to the wheel. The wheel, along with the lower portion of the MLG leg, had separated from the airplane and rolled into a swamp, and it was not recovered. The remaining fracture surface on the upper portion of the right MLG leg exhibited shear lips and ratchet marks with multiple origins of fatigue. The operator stated that, since recently purchasing the airplane, it had only been operated about 200 hours before the right MLG failed. He thought that the previous owner had sent out the right MLG for overhaul; however, the previous owner stated that he had not done so and that it must have been the previous owner. He added that he only owned the airplane for a short time when he realized that, although airworthy, “it was in rough shape,” so he sold it. None of the airplane’s maintenance logbooks were available for review.