ERA24LA138

NTSB accident investigation · Piper PA24 · Stafford, VA · March 7, 2024

Accident · No injuriesClass 4 · LimitedFinal report
Date
March 7, 2024, 17:24 local (22:24 UTC)
Place
Stafford, VA · Runway 15 at RMN airport
Injuries
2 uninjured
Damage
Substantial damage
Phase of flight
Landing
Aircraft
N6339PPiper PA24
Defining event
Landing: Sys/Comp malf/fail (non-power)
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
20240307002869A
Case key
193917

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

An overloading of the landing gear push/pull cable rod ends, which resulted in the landing gear being seized in an intermediate position during the subsequent landing.

Findings · 2

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

The pilot reported that while landing at his initial destination, the right main landing gear partially collapsed. He stated that the initial touchdown was normal, and not hard or side loaded. Once the right main gear partially collapsed, the pilot aborted the landing and attempted to retract the landing gear; however, it would not retract, and the landing gear circuit breaker tripped. The pilot contacted a mechanic and attempted to troubleshoot the problem during the pilot’s flight back to his home airport. During the troubleshooting, the pilot attempted to utilize the manual landing gear extension without success. The pilot performed multiple low passes for the mechanic to visually observe the landing gear. The mechanic reported that the left main landing gear appeared to be almost fully extended; however, the right main and nose gear were in a mid-transit position. After multiple failed attempts to correct the landing gear problem in the air, the pilot landed at his home airport. During the landing, the landing gear fully collapsed resulting in substantial damage to the fuselage and the wing spar. Examination of the landing gear by the mechanic revealed that the left and right main landing gear push tubes were bent, consistent with the push rods being overloaded. An operational test of the landing gear motor revealed that it operated normally.

Aircraft

Registration
N6339P
Reported as
Piper PA24 (180)
Category
Airplane
Serial number
24-1449
Built
1959
Airframe hours
6,476.8
Engine
Lycoming O-360-A1A, 180 horsepower, reciprocating
Damage
Substantial damage
Flight
Personal · Part 91
Operator
Aviation Adventures, doing business as Aviation Adventures
Airworthiness certificate
Standard, Normal
Last inspection
Annual · October 21, 2023 · 65.5 hours before
Departed
TGI · Tangier, VA
Destination
Same as departure
Airport
RMN · Stafford Rgnl, runway 15, 5,000 × 100 ft, asphalt
Equipment
Stall warning system, Auto-pilot, 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

As NTSB recorded them. NTSB leaves out names.

Role
Pilot
Age
20
Injuries
None
Certificate
Private
Airplane ratings
Single-engine sea, Single-engine land
Instrument ratings
Airplane
Medical
Class 3, Without waivers/limitations
Last flight review
May 8, 2023
Seat
Left
Restraint
3-point
Flight hours
644.5 total · 24.2 in this make and model · 424.5 as pilot in command · 22.4 in the last 90 days · 10.3 in the last 30 days · 0 in the last 24 hours

Weather

Conditions
Visual (VMC) · Day
Wind
30° at 8 knots
Visibility
10 statute miles
Lowest ceiling
5,000 ft overcast
Temperature
72 °F, dew point 50 °F
Altimeter
29.99 inHg
Observed at
RMN
METAR
KRMN 072215Z AUTO 03008KT 10SM OVC050 22/10 A2999 RMK AO2 T02150100

Docket · 5

The files NTSB released with the investigation on June 21, 2024, on NTSB’s docket system: statements, records, photos and specialists’ reports. 3.0 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.