# NTSB ERA24LA041: Cessna 421, N977SM, Lake City, FL, November 11, 2023 - Type: NTSB accident investigation - Classification: Accident · No injuries · Class 3 · Limited · Final report - Date: November 11, 2023, 13:57 local (18:57 UTC) - Place: Lake City, FL - Coordinates: 30.181631, -82.568132 (estimated) - Nearby events: https://openairdocs.org/map.md?lat=30.1816&lon=-82.5681&mi=10 - Phase of flight: [Landing](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb-phases/550) (OpenAirDocs' grouping) - Defining event: [Landing-flare/touchdown: Landing gear not configured](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb-events/095) - Highest injury: No injuries - Injuries: 6 uninjured - Status: Completed - Report: Approved by Office Director - Investigation class: Class 3 - NTSB office: Eastern Region Aviation - Parties: FAA/FSDO - NTSB case key (mKey): 193397 - NTSB case page: https://web.ntsb.gov/investigations/?ntsbnumber=ERA24LA041 - NTSB report (PDF, downloads): https://data.ntsb.gov/carol-repgen/api/Aviation/ReportMain/GenerateNewestReport/193397/pdf - NTSB docket: https://data.ntsb.gov/Docket?ProjectID=193397 - Page: https://openairdocs.org/ntsb/ERA24LA041 ## Probable cause A landing gear collapse following an aborted takeoff due to degraded climb performance for reasons that could not be determined. ## Findings NTSB's coded findings; those marked are part of the probable cause. - [Performance/control parameters: climb rate](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb-findings/01062035): Aircraft › Aircraft oper/perf/capability · Attain/maintain not possible (probable cause); cases with it: [Cessna 421B, 1 case](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb-findings/01062035/cases.md?model=2076014), [All aircraft, 265 cases](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb-findings/01062035/cases.md) - [Not determined](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb-findings/05000000): Not determined › Not determined · Unknown/Not determined (probable cause); cases with it: [Cessna 421B, 4 cases](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb-findings/05000000/cases.md?model=2076014), [All aircraft, 2,247 cases](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb-findings/05000000/cases.md) - [Landing gear system: gear extension and retract sys](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb-findings/01023230): Aircraft › Aircraft systems · Not specified (probable cause); cases with it: [Cessna 421B, 1 case](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb-findings/01023230/cases.md?model=2076014), [All aircraft, 416 cases](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb-findings/01023230/cases.md) - [Use of equip/info: use of equip/system](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb-findings/02063015): Personnel issues › Task performance · Pilot (probable cause); cases with it: [Cessna 421B, 4 cases](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb-findings/02063015/cases.md?model=2076014), [All aircraft, 1,391 cases](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb-findings/02063015/cases.md) ## Sequence of events The events NTSB coded, in order, by phase of flight. The defining event best describes what happened. - [Takeoff: Unknown or undetermined](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb-events/000); cases with it: [Cessna 421B, 1 case](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb-events/000/sequence.md?model=2076014), [All aircraft, 1,703 cases](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb-events/000/sequence.md) - [Landing-flare/touchdown: Landing gear not configured](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb-events/095) (defining event); cases with it: [Cessna 421B, 1 case](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb-events/095/sequence.md?model=2076014), [All aircraft, 584 cases](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb-events/095/sequence.md) ## Analysis The pilot reported that, just after rotation during takeoff, he began to accelerate the airplane to 120 knots. About 20 ft above the runway, he noticed that the airplane’s airspeed and altitude started to decrease, though he reported no issues with either engine. Assessing the length of runway remaining, the pilot chose to abort the takeoff and lowered the landing gear using the normal method. The airplane touched down on the runway before the gear was fully extended, and the landing gear collapsed. The airplane came to rest upright about 1,000 ft before the end of the runway and incurred substantial damage to the airplane’s wings. The pilot stated that there was nothing mechanically wrong with the landing gear, which operated satisfactorily during recovery of the airplane using the emergency extension system. The departure runway was about 8,000 ft long. The airplane’s flight manual indicated that, given the airplane’s gross weight near its maximum and the environmental conditions present at the time of the accident, a minimum of 3,100 ft was required to accelerate, rotate, and climb to 50 ft; however, flight track data was not available to determine the maximum altitude the airplane reached during the takeoff or the point at which the pilot decided to abort the takeoff. The pilot attributed the loss of airspeed and altitude to a microburst during takeoff. Review of weather conditions revealed that a quasi-stationary front passed through the area around the time of the accident with a resulting slight wind shift; however, there was no significant wind shear associated with the front. Additionally, no convective echoes associated with microbursts or outflow boundaries were detected in radar data or satellite imagery, and recorded weather observations did not detect any strong gusting winds until well after the accident. Thus, there was no available evidence to support that wind shear or microburst conditions existed at the time of the accident. Although a reason for the airplane’s degraded climb performance could not be determined, its operation near the maximum gross weight and the ambient temperature at the time of the accident were likely factors. Any delay in the pilot’s recognition of the airplane’s reduced performance and aborting the takeoff would have resulted in the airplane continuing about 200 additional feet along the runway every second. ## Factual narrative On November 11, 2023, about 1357 eastern standard time, a Cessna 421B, N977SM, was substantially damaged when it was involved in an accident near Lake City, Florida. The commercial pilot and five passengers were not injured. The airplane was operated as a Title 14 Code of Federal Regulations Part 91 personal flight. The pilot stated that he had landed at Lake City Gateway Airport (LCQ) to refuel the airplane, and after fueling, he performed weather and flight planning for the next leg of the flight. The pilot taxied to runway 10, an 8,003-foot-long runway, and after lining up on the runway centerline for departure, set the power and started the takeoff roll operating about 45 lbs below the airplane’s maximum gross weight. Data from an airport operations and tracking system (AOTS) captured a portion of the takeoff roll, with the airplane attaining 80 knots groundspeed about 1,544 ft down the runway. No more data points from the AOTS, or ADS-B, were available for the accident flight. The pilot stated that, after rotation, he transitioned to a climb airspeed of 120 knots and retracted the landing gear (no information was available in the airplane’s Federal Aviation Administration [FAA] Approved Aircraft Flight Manual [AFM], airplane maintenance manual, or component maintenance manual that specified how long gear retraction or extension would take). When the airplane was about 20 ft above ground level with the engines developing normal rpm and manifold pressure, the airspeed started to decrease with a corresponding loss of altitude, which the pilot later attributed to be from a “microburst on takeoff.” He assessed the length of runway remaining versus continuing the flight and aborted the takeoff. He used the normal method to extend the landing gear, but it was not fully extended and collapsed upon touchdown. The airplane came to rest upright near the aiming point markings for runway 28. Postaccident review of pictures of the airplane revealed substantial damage in the form of abrasion to the wing carry-through structure, and damage to ribs in both wings. The pilot also stated that he did not perceive any issue with either engine during the flight and that there was nothing mechanically wrong with the landing gear extension system. He also indicated that in the previous 90 days, in which he had flown that airplane on 40 flights accruing about 58 hours, he had not experienced any issues with the landing gear or engines. During recovery of the airplane from the runway, the landing gear was extended via the emergency extension system with no discrepancies reported. Safety concerns due to potential fuel leakage prevented application of electrical power to extend the gear using the normal system. According to the airplane’s AFM, for the existing environmental conditions that day, operating at gross weight, no wind, and a takeoff speed of 106 knots indicated airspeed, the distance to take off and climb to 50 ft was about 3,100 ft. The AFM also indicatedthat the calculated rate of climb performance for the temperature that day and with the flaps and landing gear up, maximum continuous power and climbing at 106 knots calibrated airspeed, was about 1,559 ft per minute and the distance to land over a 50 ft obstacle and stop was about 2,218 ft. Review of weather information indicated that an east-to-west quasi-stationary front extended in the vicinity of the accident site about the time of the accident. The surface weather observations surrounding the time of the accident depicted a slight wind shift, but there were no significant weather echoes within 5 miles of the accident site at the time of the accident. Further, there was no support for significant low-level wind shear or turbulence below 10,000 ft outside of any potential convection, and there were no Convective SIGMETs, SIGMETs, Center Weather Advisories, or Graphic-AIRMETs over the airport surrounding the period between 1400 through 1600. ## Aircraft - Registration: [N977SM](https://openairdocs.org/aircraft/N977SM), registered now, S/N 421B0595, built 1974 (OpenAirDocs) - Reported make and model: CESSNA 421 (B) - Registry model: [Cessna 421B](https://openairdocs.org/model/cessna-421b) (registry code 2076014) (OpenAirDocs) - Registry engine: [Continental GTSIO-520-C](https://openairdocs.org/engine/continental-gtsio-520-c) (registry code 17035, reciprocating) (OpenAirDocs) - Category: Airplane - Serial number: 421B0595 - Year built: 1974 - Airframe hours: 6933 - Engines: Continental GTSIO-520-H 375 horsepower reciprocating; Continental GTSIO-520-H 375 horsepower reciprocating - Damage: Substantial damage - Flight: Personal, Part 91 - Operator: Kmc Aviation Leasing LLC - Registered owner: Kmc Aviation Leasing LLC - Airworthiness certificate: Standard, Normal - Last inspection: Annual, December 1, 2022, 1,010 hours before - Destination: FLL, Fort Lauderdale, FL - Flight plan: IFR - Airport: KLCQ, Lake City Gateway Airport, runway 10, 8,003 × 150 ft, asphalt - Equipment: Auto-pilot, Stall warning system, ADS-B ## Flight crew As NTSB recorded them. NTSB leaves out names. - Pilot; age 28; injuries: none; commercial; airplane ratings: single-engine land, multi-engine land; instrument ratings: airplane; medical: class 1, with waivers/limitations; last flight review March 20, 2023; seat: left; restraint: 3-point; flight hours: 1,341 total, 78 in this make and model, 455 as pilot in command, 58 in the last 90 days, 24 in the last 30 days, 6 in the last 24 hours ## Weather - Conditions: Visual (VMC), Day - Wind: 100° at 6 knots - Visibility: 10 statute miles - Temperature: 82 °F, dew point 70 °F - Altimeter: 30.07 inHg - Observed at: KLCQ, 0.46 nm away - METAR: METAR KLCQ 111855Z AUTO 10006KT 10SM SCT026 28/21 A3007 RMK AO2= ## FAA reports on this event (1) The FAA's own accident and incident reports, matched to the aircraft by N-number and date (OpenAirDocs). - [Accident 20231111020669A](https://openairdocs.org/incident/20231111020669A), Nov 11, 2023: Cessna 421B, Lake City, FL, Minor damage. Pilot statement revealed that after rotation and initial climb-out, he believes he experienced a weather anomaly such as a microburst that caused a loss of… ## Docket (10 files) The files NTSB released with the investigation on February 20, 2025, on NTSB's docket system: https://data.ntsb.gov/Docket?ProjectID=193397. 25.9 MB in all. - Pilot/operator aircraft accident report, NTSB form 6120.1 (item 1, PDF, 11 pages, 17.6 MB): https://data.ntsb.gov/Docket/Document/docBLOB?ID=16775945&FileExtension=pdf&FileName=NTSB%206120%20Submitted%2011%2011%202023_11%20Pgs_Redacted-Rel.pdf - Pilot initial statement (item 2, PDF, 1 page, 2.0 MB): https://data.ntsb.gov/Docket/Document/docBLOB?ID=16775777&FileExtension=pdf&FileName=Pilot%20Initial%20Statement%20Submitted%20to%20FAA%20Nueva%2011%2013%202023_Redacted-Rel.pdf - Record of NTSB conversations (item 3, PDF, 4 pages, 1 photo, 403 KB): https://data.ntsb.gov/Docket/Document/docBLOB?ID=16775596&FileExtension=pdf&FileName=Record%20of%20NTSB%20Conversations-4%20Pgs%201%20Pic_Redacted-Rel.pdf - Excerpts from FAA approved aircraft flight manual (item 4, PDF, 4 pages, 2.4 MB): https://data.ntsb.gov/Docket/Document/docBLOB?ID=17952647&FileExtension=pdf&FileName=Excerpts%20Fm%20POH%20AFM-Rel.pdf - Memorandum for record - automatic dependent surveillance a�� broadcast (ADS-B) data information (item 5, PDF, 1 page, 85 KB): https://data.ntsb.gov/Docket/Document/docBLOB?ID=17953527&FileExtension=pdf&FileName=FINAL%20Memo%20For%20Record%20-%20ADS-B%20Data%20v01-Rel.pdf - Memorandum for record - vir tower airport operations and tracking system (item 6, PDF, 2 pages, 2 photos, 1.8 MB): https://data.ntsb.gov/Docket/Document/docBLOB?ID=17954114&FileExtension=pdf&FileName=FINAL%20Memo%20For%20Record%20-%20VIR%20Tower%20v01_Redacted-Rel.pdf - NTSB classification appeal decision (item 7, PDF, 2 pages, 76 KB): https://data.ntsb.gov/Docket/Document/docBLOB?ID=17952736&FileExtension=pdf&FileName=Letter%20to%20Pilot%20Advising%20Accident%20Classification%20Remains_Redacted-Rel.pdf - Memorandum for record - weather factual information (item 8, PDF, 4 pages, 94 KB): https://data.ntsb.gov/Docket/Document/docBLOB?ID=17952754&FileExtension=pdf&FileName=FINAL%20Memo%20For%20Record%20-%20Weather%20Information%20v01-Rel.pdf - Investigative photographs (item 9, PDF, 5 pages, 4 photos, 1.2 MB): https://data.ntsb.gov/Docket/Document/docBLOB?ID=17958707&FileExtension=pdf&FileName=Investigative%20Photos%20v01-Rel.pdf - Release of aircraft wreckage, NTSB form 6120.15 (item 10, PDF, 1 page, 352 KB): https://data.ntsb.gov/Docket/Document/docBLOB?ID=16775205&FileExtension=pdf&FileName=Fully%20Executed%20Wreckage%20Release%20Form_Redacted-Rel.pdf From the NTSB's public API. Aircraft are matched to registry aircraft by N-number and event date, checked against the reported serial number, make and model; the registry's history has gaps, so older matches can be wrong. Compare the reported make and model. --- OpenAirDocs.org is an independent research project of [Contrail Labs](https://contraillabs.com/). It is not affiliated with the FAA or the NTSB. Source documents are U.S. government works in the public domain.