Beechcraft P35 N2840R

Summary

On 13 May 2025 at about 16:58 local time, a Beechcraft P35 registered N2840R was involved in an accident near Houserville, Pennsylvania, United States. One person was 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

13 May 2025 at 16:58

Classification

Accident

Location

Houserville, Pennsylvania, United States

Nearest airport

State College Rgnl (UNV)

Coordinates

40.8500, -77.8476

Aircraft

Beechcraft P35

Registration

N2840R

Category

Airplane

Year built

1963

Engines

1

Operator

Not recorded

Operating rule

Part 91: General Aviation

Purpose of flight

Personal

Phase of flight

Not recorded

Route

Allentown → Unknown

Aircraft damage

Substantial

Weather

IMC

Light

Day

NTSB number

ERA25LA205

Nobody was injured.

The pilot’s failure to extend the landing gear before landing.

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

Read the full NTSB narrative

The purpose of the flight was to conduct two cross-country instrument flight rules practice flights between two airports. After departure, the pilot reported that he entered instrument meteorological conditions (IMC) shortly after takeoff and remained in IMC until he was near his destination airport. The pilot stated that he “messed up” his first approach, and he performed a missed approach. After maneuvering for his second approach, the pilot established the airplane for his second attempt; however, the pilot reported that he was “task-saturated” and that he “neglected to lower the landing gear.” While continuing the approach, the pilot described that he developed “tunnel vision” and did not verify that the landing gear was down. The pilot subsequently landed the airplane on the runway with the landing gear still retracted resulting in substantial damage to the fuselage. The pilot reported there were no preaccident mechanical malfunctions or failures that would have precluded normal operation. Postaccident examination of the airplane confirmed that the landing gear position handle was in the up position and that the landing gear operated normally when extended. The landing gear position warning horn was not functional.

Quoted verbatim from the NTSB record.