- Date
- October 3, 1994, 07:53 local (11:53 UTC)
- Place
- Stuart, FL
- Injuries
- 7 uninjured
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Phase of flight
- Landing
- Aircraft
- N701AMCessna 421B
- Weather
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Status
- Completed · report February 14, 1995
- Report
- Approved by Office Director
- FAA report
- 19941003035399A
- Case key
- 37683
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 improper rigging of the landing gear safety squat switch by other maintenance personnel. Contributing to the accident was the contamination of the gear squat switch with corrosion and water.
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
After takeoff tower controllers told the pilot that they saw smoke trailing from the right engine. The pilot elected to return to the field for landing, and lowered the landing gear and observed the gear down indications. On landing roll the gear collapsed. After the airplane was recovered and placed on jacks it was discovered that the landing gear safety switch was contaminated with water, corroded and improperly rigged.
Factual narrative
On October 3, 1994, about 0753, eastern daylight time, N701AM, a Cessna C-421B, registered to and operated by Air Mobile Ministries, experienced an all-landing gears collapse on landing at Whitman Field, Stuart, Florida. The flight was a 14 CFR Part 91 personal flight. The planned destination was Port-au-Prince, Haiti. Visual meteorological conditions prevailed at the time and a VFR flight plan was filed. The airplane was substantially damaged and the pilot and six passengers reported no injuries. The flight was originating at the time of the accident.
The pilot stated that after takeoff the landing gear would not come up so he placed the gear handle in the down position and observed three green lights. On landing roll the gear collapsed. The one passenger who was on board was an FAA employee in a duty travel status, from the San Juan, Puerto Rico, Flight Standards District Office.
Examination of the landing gear safety switch [Squat] by FAA personnel revealed that the switch was corroded, full of water and was improperly rigged. FAA personnel also reported the airplane weight and balance data used by the pilot for takeoff computations was in error, and the airplane was about 200 pounds over gross weight on departure.
Aircraft
- Registration
- N701AM
- Reported as
- Cessna 421B
- Category
- Airplane
- Serial number
- 80366
- Airframe hours
- 3,329
- Engine
- Continental GTSIO-520-H, 375 horsepower, reciprocating
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Personal · Part 91
- Registered owner
- Air Mobile Ministries
- Airworthiness certificate
- Standard, Normal
- Last inspection
- Annual · February 5, 1994 · 50 hours before
- Destination
- MTPP · Port-Au-Prince, OF
- Flight plan
- VFR
- Airport
- SUA · Witham Field, runway 29, 5,000 × 200 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
- 43
- Certificate
- Airline transport
- Airplane ratings
- Multi-engine land, Single-engine land
- Instrument ratings
- Airplane
- Medical
- Class 3, Valid Medical--w/ waivers/lim
- Seat
- Left
- Flight hours
- 4,200 total · 430 in this make and model · 3,900 as pilot in command · 30 in the last 90 days · 10 in the last 30 days
Weather
- Conditions
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Wind
- Calm
- Visibility
- 7 statute miles
- Lowest ceiling
- 25,000 ft broken
- Temperature
- 79 °F, dew point 54 °F
- Altimeter
- 29.00 inHg
- Observed at
- PBI, 14 nm away
FAA reports on this event · 1
The FAA’s own accident and incident reports, matched to the aircraft by N-number and date.