# NTSB ERA26LA265: Beech E35, N3272C, Lincoln, AL, June 27, 2026 - Type: NTSB accident investigation - Classification: Accident · No injuries · Class 4 · Limited · Final report - Date: June 27, 2026, 11:45 local (16:45 UTC) - Place: Lincoln, AL - Coordinates: 33.57149, -86.050748 (estimated) - Nearby events: https://openairdocs.org/map.md?lat=33.5715&lon=-86.0507&mi=10 - Phase of flight: [Landing](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb-phases/550) (OpenAirDocs' grouping) - Defining event: [Landing: Landing gear not configured](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb-events/095) - Highest injury: No injuries - Injuries: 1 uninjured - Status: Completed, report October 1, 2026 - Report: Approved by Office Director - Investigation class: Class 4 - Basic report with no Prelim publish - NTSB office: Eastern Region Aviation - Parties: FAA/FSDO - NTSB case key (mKey): 203353 - NTSB case page: https://web.ntsb.gov/investigations/?ntsbnumber=ERA26LA265 - NTSB report (PDF, downloads): https://data.ntsb.gov/carol-repgen/api/Aviation/ReportMain/GenerateNewestReport/203353/pdf - NTSB docket: https://data.ntsb.gov/Docket?ProjectID=203353 - Page: https://openairdocs.org/ntsb/ERA26LA265 ## Probable cause The pilot’s failure to ensure that the landing gear were extended prior to landing. ## Findings NTSB's coded findings; those marked are part of the probable cause. - [Use of equip/info: use of equip/system](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb-findings/02063015): Personnel issues › Task performance · Pilot (probable cause); cases with it: [Beech E35, 2 cases](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb-findings/02063015/cases.md?model=1151512), [All aircraft, 1,391 cases](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb-findings/02063015/cases.md) - [Landing gear system: gear extension and retract sys](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb-findings/01023230): Aircraft › Aircraft systems · Incorrect use/operation (probable cause); cases with it: [Beech E35, 1 case](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb-findings/01023230/cases.md?model=1151512), [All aircraft, 416 cases](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb-findings/01023230/cases.md) ## Sequence of events The events NTSB coded, in order, by phase of flight. The defining event best describes what happened. - [Landing: Landing gear not configured](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb-events/095) (defining event); cases with it: [Beech E35, 1 case](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb-events/095/sequence.md?model=1151512), [All aircraft, 584 cases](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb-events/095/sequence.md) ## Analysis Before departing, the pilot found that the airplane’s battery was “low,” so he connected it to a charger for 15 minutes, after which he was able to start the engine normally. He subsequently completed three flight legs uneventfully, and was returning to his home airport when the accident occurred. As the pilot approached the destination airport, he noted that there was a thunderstorm in the area and elected to perform a downwind landing. During the landing approach, the pilot moved the landing gear position lever to the down position and extended the flaps. Due to the position the position of an electronic flight bag device in the cockpit, he did not observe that the landing gear down position indicator had not illuminated, nor did he realize that the landing gear circuit breaker had tripped. The pilot subsequently landed the airplane with the landing gear retracted, which resulted in substantial damage to the underside of the airplane’s fuselage. Postaccident testing of the airplane’s landing gear revealed that it functioned normally when external electrical power was applied, and that the landing gear position indication lights operated normally. Functional testing of the airplane’s alternator and ammeter revealed that they functioned normally, but that the airplane’s battery had little to no capacity due to having dead cells. It is likely that the battery’s degraded condition resulted in the tripped landing gear system circuit breaker during the accident flight, and resulted in the landing gear’s failure to extend. Had the pilot noticed that the landing gear did not extend as expected, he could have taken additional troubleshooting steps rather than continuing the landing with the landing gear not extended. ## Aircraft - Registration: [N3272C](https://openairdocs.org/aircraft/N3272C), registered now, S/N D-3938, built 1954 (OpenAirDocs) - Reported make and model: BEECH E35 - Registry model: [Beech E35](https://openairdocs.org/model/beech-e35) (registry code 1151512) (OpenAirDocs) - Registry engine: [Continental E225 series](https://openairdocs.org/engine/continental-e225-series) (registry code 17015, reciprocating) (OpenAirDocs) - Category: Airplane - Serial number: D-3938 - Year built: 1954 - Airframe hours: 6084.2 - Engines: Continental Aerospace Technologies E225-8 225 horsepower reciprocating - Damage: Substantial damage - Flight: Personal, Part 91 - Airworthiness certificate: Standard, Normal - Last inspection: Annual, April 1, 2026, 12 hours before - Departed: 02A, Clanton, AL - Destination: ASN, Talladega, AL - Airport: ASN, Talladega Muni, runway 04, 6,032 × 100 ft, asphalt - Equipment: Stall warning system, ADS-B, Auto-pilot, Electronic flight bag or handheld device, Handheld GPS ## Flight crew As NTSB recorded them. NTSB leaves out names. - Pilot; age 82; injuries: none; private; airplane ratings: single-engine land; medical: basicmed, without waivers/limitations; last flight review November 5, 2025; seat: left; restraint: 4-point; flight hours: 1,194 total, 20 in this make and model, 1,144 as pilot in command, 18 in the last 90 days, 9 in the last 30 days, 3 in the last 24 hours ## Weather - Conditions: Visual (VMC), Day - Wind: 240° at 8 knots - Visibility: 10 statute miles - Lowest ceiling: 3,000 ft broken - Temperature: 85 °F - Observed at: ASN ## 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 20260627007619A](https://openairdocs.org/incident/20260627007619A), Jun 27, 2026: Beech E35, Lincoln, AL, Substantial damage. Aircraft landed without the gear extended. ## Docket (5 files) The files NTSB released with the investigation on October 1, 2026, on NTSB's docket system: https://data.ntsb.gov/Docket?ProjectID=203353. 5.5 MB in all. - Pilot/operator aircraft accident report, NTSB form 6120.1 (item 1, PDF, 10 pages, 4.3 MB): https://data.ntsb.gov/Docket/Document/docBLOB?ID=20822216&FileExtension=pdf&FileName=NTSB%20Form%206120.1_Redacted-Rel.pdf - Pilot's statement (item 2, PDF, 2 pages, 450 KB): https://data.ntsb.gov/Docket/Document/docBLOB?ID=20814840&FileExtension=pdf&FileName=Gear%20Up%20Letter_Redacted-Rel.pdf - Battery and alternator test summary (item 3, PDF, 2 pages, 119 KB): https://data.ntsb.gov/Docket/Document/docBLOB?ID=20819610&FileExtension=pdf&FileName=Component%20test_Redacted-Rel.pdf - Investigation photographs (item 4, PDF, 3 pages, 515 KB): https://data.ntsb.gov/Docket/Document/docBLOB?ID=20816634&FileExtension=pdf&FileName=Investigation%20Photographs-Rel.pdf - FAA inspector's statement (item 5, PDF, 1 page, 48 KB): https://data.ntsb.gov/Docket/Document/docBLOB?ID=20818543&FileExtension=pdf&FileName=signed%20Inspector%20Statement_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.