- Date
- May 23, 2026, 09:54 local (13:54 UTC)
- Place
- Bartow, FL
- Injuries
- 1 uninjured
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Phase of flight
- Landing
- Aircraft
- N5376PPiper PA-24-250
- Defining event
- Landing: Landing gear not configured
- Weather
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Status
- Completed · report July 30, 2026
- 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
- 20260523005509A
- Case key
- 203150
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’s failure to extend the landing gear before 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, during a straight-in approach, he forgot to extend the airplane’s landing gear and that he landed with the landing gear retracted. The airplane slid to a stop on the runway and sustained substantial damage to the lower fuselage. The pilot reported that there were no preaccident mechanical malfunctions or failures with the airplane that would have precluded normal operation.
Aircraft
- Registration
- N5376P
- Reported as
- Piper PA-24-250
- Category
- Airplane
- Serial number
- 24-426
- Built
- 1959
- Airframe hours
- 1,676.6
- Engine
- Lycoming Engines O-540-A1A, 250 horsepower, reciprocating
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Personal · Part 91
- Airworthiness certificate
- Standard, Utility
- Last inspection
- Annual · May 22, 2026 · 1 hours before
- Departed
- FA83 · Zellwood, FL
- Destination
- Same as departure
- Airport
- BOW · Bartow Exec, runway 09L, 5,000 × 150 ft, asphalt
- Equipment
- Auto-pilot, Angle of attack indicator, ADS-B, Electronic primary flight display
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
- 53
- Injuries
- None
- Certificate
- Private
- Airplane ratings
- Single-engine land
- Medical
- Class 3, With waivers/limitations
- Last flight review
- August 29, 2025
- Seat
- Left
- Restraint
- 3-point
- Flight hours
- 170 total · 60 in this make and model
Weather
- Conditions
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Wind
- 130° at 9 knots
- Visibility
- 10 statute miles
- Temperature
- 82 °F, dew point 75 °F
- Altimeter
- 30.12 inHg
- Observed at
- BOW
- METAR
- METAR KBOW 231335Z AUTO 13009KT 10SM SCT017 SCT024 28/24 A3012 RMK AO2 PWINO=
FAA reports on this event · 1
The FAA’s own accident and incident reports, matched to the aircraft by N-number and date.
Other investigations on N5376P · 1
Matched to the same aircraft by N-number and date.