- Date
- August 6, 1996, 09:21 local (14:21 UTC)
- Place
- Panama City, FL
- Injuries
- 1 uninjured
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Phase of flight
- Landing
- Aircraft
- N4478WBeech 58
- Weather
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Status
- Completed · report April 29, 1997
- Report
- Approved by Office Director
- FAA report
- 19960806044489A
- Case key
- 38082
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
failure of the pilot to extend the landing gear before touchdown, which resulted in an inadvertent wheels-up landing. Factors relating to the accident were: the pilot allowed his attention to be diverted, and the resultant interference with his landing routine (habit pattern).
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 stated that during an approach to land, he became preoccupied with hold short instructions and traffic advisories. He indicated that this preoccupation led him to deviate from his landing routine, which resulted in a failure to lower the landing gear. Subsequently, the airplane landed gear-up, and was damaged.
Factual narrative
On August 6, 1996, about 0921 central daylight time, a Beech 58, N4478W, registered to Maddox Enterprises, Inc., was landed gear-up at the Panama City-Bay County International Airport, Panama City, Florida. Visual meteorological conditions prevailed at the time and an IFR flight plan was filed for the 14 CFR Part 91 personal flight. The airplane was substantially damaged and the private-rated pilot, the sole occupant, was not injured. The flight originated about 0800 from the Walker County-Bevill Field Airport, Jasper, Alabama.
The pilot stated that the flight was cleared to land runway 14, hold short of runway 5. He further stated that he became pre-occupied by the hold short instructions and traffic advisories, and landed gear-up. He further stated that he did not hear the landing gear warning horn when he reduced the power to land. No determination was made as to whether the gear warning was operational.
Aircraft
- Registration
- N4478W
- Reported as
- Beech 58
- Category
- Airplane
- Serial number
- TH446
- Airframe hours
- 4,453
- Engine
- Continental IO-520-C7B, 285 horsepower, reciprocating
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Personal · Part 91
- Operator
- Robert F. Maddox
- Registered owner
- Maddox Enterprises, Inc.
- Airworthiness certificate
- Standard, Normal
- Last inspection
- Annual · March 1, 1996 · 20 hours before
- Departed
- JFX · Jasper, AL
- Destination
- PFN
- Flight plan
- IFR
- Airport
- PFN · Panama City-Bay County In, runway 14, 6,314 × 150 ft, asphalt
Flight crew
As NTSB recorded them. NTSB leaves out names.
- Role
- Pilot
- Age
- 53
- Certificate
- Private
- Airplane ratings
- Single-engine land, Multi-engine land
- Instrument ratings
- Airplane
- Medical
- Class 3, Valid Medical--w/ waivers/lim
- Seat
- Left
- Flight hours
- 1,874 total · 1,250 in this make and model · 1,768 as pilot in command · 19 in the last 90 days · 5 in the last 30 days · 2 in the last 24 hours
Weather
- Conditions
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Wind
- 120° at 5 knots
- Visibility
- 7 statute miles
- Lowest ceiling
- None
- Altimeter
- 30.00 inHg
- Observed at
- PFN
FAA reports on this event · 1
The FAA’s own accident and incident reports, matched to the aircraft by N-number and date.