- Date
- February 18, 1989, 12:30 local (17:30 UTC)
- Place
- Fort Lauderdale, FL
- Injuries
- 3 uninjured
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Phase of flight
- Landing
- Aircraft
- N4303XPiper PA-32R-300
- Weather
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Status
- Completed · report March 12, 1990
- Report
- Approved by Office Director
- FAA report
- 19890218002239A
- Case key
- 32401
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
Faulty installation of avionics equipment which caused wiring in the landing gear system to be improperly reinstalled.
Sequence of events
NTSB’s coding before 2008: each occurrence and phase of flight, and the causes and factors under it. The codes are defined in NTSB’s coding manual.
Analysis
The pilot said that as the aircraft touched down the left main gear collapsed. He performed an aborted landing. The tower reported that the gear appeared down. Upon touchdown the right main gear collapsed and the aircraft slid off the runway. Examination of the aircraft revealed a loose landing gear wiring block. When the throttle was retarded the landing gear circuit breaker would pop, shutting off the hydraulic pump, the gear position lights, and the warning horn. When weight was put on the gear the absence of hydraulic pressure permitted the gear to collapse. This was the first flight after a non-recorded loran installation was performed.
Aircraft
- Registration
- N4303X
- Reported as
- Piper PA-32R-300
- Category
- Airplane
- Serial number
- 32R-7680008
- Airframe hours
- 3,331
- Engine
- Lycoming IO-540-K1A5D, 300 horsepower, reciprocating
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Business · Part 91
- Operator
- Garlock, Frank W.
- Registered owner
- Sullivan, Dana R.
- Airworthiness certificate
- Standard, Normal
- Last inspection
- Annual · July 29, 1988 · 143 hours before
- Departed
- TPA · Tampa, FL
- Destination
- FLL · Fort Lauderdale, FL
- Flight plan
- IFR
- Airport
- Ft. Lauderdale Int'L, runway 13, 6,928 × 150 ft, asphalt
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
- 58
- Certificate
- Private
- Airplane ratings
- Multi-engine land, Single-engine land
- Instrument ratings
- Airplane
- Medical
- Class 3, Valid Medical--w/ waivers/lim
- Seat
- Left
- Flight hours
- 3,185 total · 1,000 in this make and model · 3,000 as pilot in command · 50 in the last 90 days · 15 in the last 30 days · 2 in the last 24 hours
Weather
- Conditions
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Wind
- 110° at 7 knots
- Visibility
- 15 statute miles
- Lowest ceiling
- None
- Temperature
- 81 °F, dew point 63 °F
- Altimeter
- 30.00 inHg
- Observed at
- FLL
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 N4303X · 1
Matched to the same aircraft by N-number and date.