# NTSB LAX06LA101: Cessna R182, N88AA, Bullhead City, AZ, February 3, 2006 - Type: NTSB accident investigation - Classification: Accident · No injuries · Limited investigation · Final report - Date: February 3, 2006, 16:37 local (23:37 UTC) - Place: Bullhead City, AZ - Coordinates: 35.150001, -114.550003 - Nearby events: https://openairdocs.org/map.md?lat=35.1500&lon=-114.5500&mi=10 - Phase of flight: [Taxi](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb-phases/250) (OpenAirDocs' grouping) - Highest injury: No injuries - Injuries: 1 uninjured - Status: Completed, report August 29, 2006 - Report: Approved by Office Director - Parties: Federal Aviation Administration - NTSB case key (mKey): 63201 - NTSB case page: https://web.ntsb.gov/investigations/?ntsbnumber=LAX06LA101 - NTSB report (PDF, downloads): https://data.ntsb.gov/carol-repgen/api/Aviation/ReportMain/GenerateNewestReport/63201/pdf - Page: https://openairdocs.org/ntsb/LAX06LA101 ## Probable cause overload of the nose landing gear actuator attach bracket resulting in collapse of the nose gear while taxiing. It is undetermined when and under what circumstances the overload occurred. ## Sequence of events In NTSB's coding before 2008 (https://www.ntsb.gov/GILS/Documents/codman.pdf). - Gear collapsed, taxi - from landing - landing gear,nose gear attach point - failure,total (cause) ## Analysis The airplane was substantially damaged when the nose wheel collapsed while turning off the runway after landing. The pilot stated that that he verified that the green light was illuminated on the gear indicator, showing that all three landing gear were down and locked, then he made a normal landing. The pilot was taxiing off the runway after landing when the nose gear collapsed. The pilot further stated that he performed a normal touchdown and did not hit the runway excessively hard. An inspection by an Federal Aviation Administration Aviation Safety Inspector revealed that the nose gear collapsed as a result of sheared rivets that attach the bracket assembly for the nose gear hydraulic actuator. Smearing on the rivet shanks indicated a loading directionality from aft to forward, which is the direction of normal retraction for the nose gear. No other damage was noted to the firewall or other airframe structures consistent with a hard landing. The inspector opined that the evidence was not conclusive that the sheared rivets occurred on the accident landing, and may in fact represent damage resulting from prior ground handling (towing) operations. ## Factual narrative On February 3, 2006, about 1637 mountain standard time, a Cessna R182, N88AA, experienced a nose gear collapse during landing at Laughlin/Bullhead International Airport, Bullhead City, Arizona. Sawyer Aviation was operating the airplane under the provisions of 14 CFR Part 91. The private pilot, the sole occupant, was not injured; the airplane sustained substantial damage. The cross-country personal flight departed Scottsdale, Arizona, about 1600, with a planned destination of the Laughlin/Bullhead International Airport. Visual meteorological conditions prevailed, and no flight plan had been filed. The approximate global positioning system (GPS) coordinates of the primary wreckage were 35 degrees 09 minutes north latitude and 114 degrees 33 minutes west longitude. The pilot stated that he verified that the green light was illuminated on the gear indicator, showing all three landing gear down and locked, then made a normal landing. After landing, he was taxiing and the nose gear collapsed before he could get off the runway. The pilot further stated that he performed a normal touchdown and did not hit the runway excessively hard. The airplane was flown twice previously that same day and received minor maintenance before the first flight. The maintenance facility director stated that the airplane was not moved from its tie-down spot for the maintenance. The first pilot that flew the airplane, and the instructor pilot that flew with the accident pilot prior to the accident flight, stated that no hard landings occurred and no discrepancies were noted with the landing gear. They also stated that no structural damage was noticed during preflight walk-around. An inspection by a Federal Aviation Administration Aviation Safety Inspector revealed that the nose gear collapsed as a result of sheared rivets that attach the bracket assembly for the nose gear hydraulic actuator. Smearing on the rivet shanks indicated a loading directionality from aft to forward, which is the direction of normal retraction for the nose gear. No other damage was noted to the firewall or other airframe structures that would be consistent with a hard landing. The inspector opined that the evidence was not conclusive that the sheared rivets occurred on the accident landing, and may in fact represent damage resulting from prior ground handling (towing) operations. ## Aircraft - Registration: N88AA (not matched to a registry record) - Reported make and model: Cessna R182 - Category: Airplane - Serial number: R18200483 - Airframe hours: 4594 - Engines: Lycoming O-540 240 horsepower reciprocating - Damage: Substantial damage - Flight: Personal, Part 91 - Operator: Sawyer Aviation LLC, doing business as Sawyer Aviation - Registered owner: James O. Miller - Airworthiness certificate: Standard, Normal - Last inspection: Annual, November 1, 2005, 79 hours before - Departed: SDL, Scottsdale, AZ - Destination: IFP, Bullhead City, AZ - Airport: IFP, Laughlin/Bullhead Internationa, runway 34, 7,520 × 150 ft, asphalt ## Flight crew As NTSB recorded them. NTSB leaves out names. - Pilot; age 22; injuries: none; private; airplane ratings: single-engine land; medical: class 3, without waivers/limitations; last flight review January 1, 2006; seat: left; flight hours: 80 total, 4 in this make and model, 22 as pilot in command, 38 in the last 90 days, 23 in the last 30 days, 8 in the last 24 hours ## Weather - Conditions: Visual (VMC), Day - Wind: 360° at 11 knots - Visibility: 10 statute miles - Lowest ceiling: none - Temperature: 73 °F, dew point 27 °F - Altimeter: 30.02 inHg - Observed at: KIFP ## 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 20060203004059A](https://openairdocs.org/incident/20060203004059A), Feb 3, 2006: Cessna R182, Bullhead City, AZ, Substantial damage. (-23) On February 3, 2006, at approximately 1737 MST, N88AA, a Cessna 182-R182, with [privacy data omitted] performing as pilot-in-command, experienced a nose… 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.