- Date
- January 9, 2024, 12:15 local (17:15 UTC)
- Place
- Groton, CT
- Injuries
- 2 uninjured
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Phase of flight
- Landing
- Aircraft
- N33300Piper PA-34-200
- Defining event
- Landing: Landing gear not configured
- Weather
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Status
- Completed
- Report
- Approved by Office Director
- Investigation class
- Class 4 - Basic report with no Prelim publish
- NTSB office
- Eastern Region Aviation
- Parties
- FAA/FSDO
- FAA report
- 20240109000279A
- Case key
- 193664
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 pilot receiving instruction’s failure to extend the landing gear prior to landing. Also contributing, was the flight instructor’s failure to monitor the airplane’s configuration while on approach to land.
Findings · 3
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.
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
On the downwind leg of the traffic pattern the pilot receiving instruction and the flight instructor were having a conversation about when to extend the landing gear, as the pilot receiving instruction was new to this airplane. During this discussion the pilots were contacted by air traffic control (ATC) and a conversation took place about a possible change of runway. After the exchange with ATC the pilots did not return to their conversation about when to extend the landing gear. After being cleared to land, the pilot receiving instruction performed a normal approach to landing. The pilots reported that they realized they had forgotten to extend the landing gear when they heard the airplane contact the runway. The airplane skidded down the asphalt, resulting in substantial damage to the external longerons of the fuselage. The flight instructor reported that there were no preaccident mechanical malfunctions or failures with the airplane that would have precluded normal operation. The airplane was equipped with a landing gear position warning horn that was designed to sound when either of the throttles were pulled back for landing. Neither pilot specifically remembered hearing the warning horn during the accident landing. After the airplane was recovered, the landing gear warning horn was tested and was found to operate normally.
Aircraft
- Registration
- N33300
- Reported as
- Piper PA-34-200
- Category
- Airplane
- Serial number
- 34-7450205
- Built
- 1974
- Airframe hours
- 20,560.5
- Engines
- Lycoming LIO-360-C1E6, 200 horsepower, reciprocatingLycoming IO-360-C1E6, 200 horsepower, reciprocating
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Instructional · Part 91
- Operator
- Upgrade Incorporated, doing business as Action Multi Ratings
- Registered owner
- Upgrade Incorporated
- Airworthiness certificate
- Standard, Normal
- Last inspection
- Annual · January 8, 2024 · 3.1 hours before
- Departed
- GON · Groton, CT
- Airport
- GON · Groton-New London, runway 05, 5,000 × 150 ft, asphalt
- Equipment
- Stall warning system, Electronic flight bag or handheld device, ADS-B
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
- Flight instructor
- Age
- 23
- Injuries
- None
- Certificates
- Flight instructor, Commercial
- Airplane ratings
- Multi-engine land, Single-engine land
- Instrument ratings
- Airplane
- Medical
- Class 1, With waivers/limitations
- Last flight review
- September 1, 2023
- Seat
- Right
- Restraint
- 3-point
- Flight hours
- 1,644 total · 246 in this make and model · 1,510 as pilot in command · 168 in the last 90 days · 23 in the last 30 days · 0 in the last 24 hours
- Role
- Pilot
- Age
- 53
- Injuries
- None
- Certificate
- Commercial
- Airplane ratings
- Single-engine land
- Instrument ratings
- Airplane
- Medical
- Class 2, With waivers/limitations
- Last flight review
- June 21, 2022
- Seat
- Left
- Restraint
- 3-point
- Flight hours
- 2,969 total · 4 in this make and model · 2,596 as pilot in command · 10 in the last 90 days · 6 in the last 30 days · 0 in the last 24 hours
Weather
- Conditions
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Wind
- 90° at 8 knots
- Visibility
- 10 statute miles
- Lowest ceiling
- None
- Temperature
- 39 °F, dew point 34 °F
- Altimeter
- 30.30 inHg
- Observed at
- GON
- METAR
- KGON 091656Z 09008KT 10SM CLR 04/01 A3030 RMK AO2 SLP259 T00440011
Docket · 7
The files NTSB released with the investigation on February 29, 2024, on NTSB’s docket system: statements, records, photos and specialists’ reports. 11.2 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.