Aviation Accident Summaries

Aviation Accident Summary ERA16LA320

Jackson, TN, USA

Aircraft #1

N66804

BEECH B100

Analysis

The commercial pilot reported that he had completed several uneventful flights in the multiengine airplane earlier on the day of the accident. He subsequently took off for a return flight to his home airport. He reported that the en route portion of the flight was uneventful, and on final approach for the traffic pattern for landing, all instruments were indicating normal. He stated that the airplane landed "firmly," that the right wing dropped, and that the right engine propeller blades contacted the runway. He pulled back on the yoke, and the airplane became airborne again momentarily before settling back on the runway. The right main landing gear (MLG) collapsed, and the airplane then veered off the right side of the runway and struck a runway sign and weather antenna. Witness reports corroborated the pilot's report. Postaccident examination revealed that the right MLG actuator was fractured and that the landing gear was inside the wheel well, which likely resulted from the hard landing. The pilot reported that there were no preimpact mechanical failures or malfunctions with the airframe or engine that would have precluded normal operation. Based on the pilot and witness statements and the wreckage examination, it is likely that the pilot improperly flared the airplane, which resulted in the hard landing and the collapse of the MLG.

Factual Information

On September 21, 2016, about 1620 central daylight time, a Beech B100, N66804, was substantially damaged when the right main landing gear collapsed during landing at the Mc Kellar-Sipes Regional Airport (MKL), Jackson, Tennessee. The commercial pilot was not injured. Visual meteorological conditions prevailed and an instrument flight rules flight plan was filed for the business flight that originated from Memphis International Airport (MEM), Memphis, Tennessee. The airplane was registered to OIA Enterprises LLC, and operated by a private individual under the provisions of 14 Code of Federal Regulations Part 91.According to the pilot, he was flying businessmen to different airports all day and was returning from MEM to his home airport. The en route portion of the flight was uneventful, and on the final approach leg of the traffic pattern for landing at MKL, he verified that the three green landing gear indicator lights were illuminated, and all instruments were indicating normal. He further stated that the airplane landed "firmly" and the right wing dropped down far enough that the right engine propeller blades contacted the runway. The pilot then pulled back on the control yoke and the airplane became airborne again momentarily, before settling back down on the runway. The right main landing gear collapsed. The airplane then veered off the right side of the runway, struck a runway sign and contacted a weather antenna. According to witnesses, they watched the airplane land hard on the runway, then the airplane flew back up in the air and landed hard again on the runway. The right landing gear folded-up under the airplane and the airplane slid off the right side of the runway. Examination of the wreckage by a Federal Aviation Administration inspector revealed that the airplane was resting on its right wing, against the airport's weather service antenna. The right landing gear was inside the wheel-well. The left engine was hanging loose from the motor mounts. After the airplane was raised, the inspector noticed that the right main landing gear actuator was fractured in half.

Probable Cause and Findings

The pilot’s improper landing flare, which resulted in a hard landing.

 

Source: NTSB Aviation Accident Database

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