Piper PA-24-250 N5309P

Summary

On 9 June 1999 at about 17:58 local time, a Piper PA-24-250 registered N5309P, operated by Joel Carlson, was involved in an accident near Plentywood, Montana, United States. 2 people were on board and nobody was injured. The aircraft was substantially damaged. The NTSB has published a probable cause for this accident; it is quoted in full below.

Date

9 June 1999 at 17:58

Classification

Accident

Location

Plentywood, Montana, United States

Nearest airport

Plentywood (PWD)

Coordinates

48.7191, -104.5697

Aircraft

Piper PA-24-250

Registration

N5309P

Category

Airplane

Engines

1

Operator

Joel Carlson

Operating rule

Part 91: General Aviation

Purpose of flight

Personal

Phase of flight

Not recorded

Route

Plentywood → Unknown

Aircraft damage

Substantial

Weather

VMC

Light

Day

NTSB number

SEA99LA083

Nobody was injured.

The pilot's failure to ensure that the landing gear were properly down and locked for landing.

Quoted verbatim from the NTSB record. This site does not paraphrase or interpret it.

Read the full NTSB narrative

The pilot reported it took three landing gear extension attempts to obtain a gear-down indication. The landing was onto a turf runway. He stated that when 'I thought I heard the mains touch, I eased the nose forward to pin it down and then the airplane was stopping awful fast and then the propeller stopped horizontally and it was bent back.' He reported that no mechanical malfunction or failure was involved in the accident, and recommended 'double check[ing] gear handle & gear light' as a way to prevent the accident. An individual who responded to the airport to 'help extend the gear' after the accident stated that when he looked under the aircraft, 'the main gear was out of the gear well and the gear doors were out about an inch.' This individual further stated that when he removed packed mud and dirt from the nose wheel well, all three gear fell into the down and locked position. The aircraft owner's manual landing check list directs pilots to check landing gear down by ensuring the green gear-down indicator light is on, the gear warning horn is off, and the gear emergency handle is in forward position.

Quoted verbatim from the NTSB record.