The pilot of the multiengine airplane, a Piper PA-60, reported that he had completed six touch-and-go landings uneventfully at the airport in Richmond, Kentucky.
During his approach for the seventh landing, he was distracted by a low fuel caution light illuminating in the cockpit, as well as other traffic in the area.
He forgot to extend the landing gear and the airplane landed on the runway with the landing gear retracted. The airplane came to rest upright on the runway. A post-accident examination revealed substantial damage to the fuselage stringers.
Probable Cause: The pilot’s failure to extend the landing gear prior to landing.
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This September 2022 accident report is provided by the National Transportation Safety Board. Published as an educational tool, it is intended to help pilots learn from the misfortunes of others.
All these people that land wheels up are all over 70 years of age, right ?? Don’t tell me they are younger and with total coverage insurance, because I was just told that this kind of unjustifiable flying is only done by senior citizens , Younger pilots don’t do this, they know better than to not put the gear down on a retract type aircraft. Now lets see how many senior pilots forget to put the gear down when landing ???
Nope.! This guy was 47 YO and had 428 hrs in the aircraft, which should have been enough to memorize the landing checklist. A pilot might glance at it on downwind, but there’s little/no time to read at each turn in the pattern.!
The newer noise cancelling headsets have the capability to cancel exterior sounds…like the gear warning horn…a real potential problem.!
He may have not heard to warning horn.?
I use a passive headset. I like hearing ALL the aircraft noises, especially when they don’t sound right.!
As an airport manager I can confirm that during the last year, I’ve had to remove two aircraft off our primary runway as a result of the pilots forgetting to lower the landing gear. Each time I met the pilot the first words out of their mouths were, “I’m so sorry, I forgot to lower the gear”.
Obviously everyone knows about “stabilized approaches” and everyone knows about “going around/missed approach”. What folks haven’t made yet is an instinctive response: If for any reason your approach or your brain isn’t “stabilized” —> Go Around/Go Missed!!!
Maybe Garmin needs to invent a “Helmet Fire” button? It’ll execute either a published missed approach and hold or it will head to the nearest safe area and set up its own hold.
Then when you get your wits about you can proceed to execute a flawlessly stabilized approach & landing (on three (to six) soft rubber tires)!
I love these armchair quarterbacks.
I wonder how many of them have flown multi-engine planes beyond a Seminole.
You are on short final. You are concerned that you might lose an engine and be or get below blue line.
Don’t know what that is? That is the VSSE — Single engine Safe speed. Below this and having to add power can get you into a VMCA roll. You are below 1000 AGL in the RED area. You can’t give up altitude for air speed to get to blue line because, well, you are too low.
So, yes, this guy was probably task saturated.
But let’s look at this from the other side: What if he managed to get gear down and flaps, but lost an engine (any number of reasons) and because of VMCA he lost control and died?
No one would be praising him for getting the gear down.
Just say’n’.
Take it easy, Dan. If you know flying well at all, you understand that high workload single pilot ops like this are breeding grounds for this kind of incident. It could happen to any of us.
Be humble. This could be you or me or anybody who gets task saturated, especially without an FO to keep them honest.
That’s B.S. We should never make excuses for an inept pilot. Every leg of the journey has its priorities; it starts with the launch and ends with the landing. Presumably we’ve mapped out the stages in between. If one feels overwhelmed, one hasn’t prepared, including preparing for the unexpected. We always ran couple “what if” scenarios just for fun.
Tom C.
Years back when I was working as a Flight Instructor at a small airfield a Delta DC-9 Captain (FKA North East Airlines) offered me a ride in his Luscomb 8 plane. I was impressed as he pulled out the checklist that had just a few items and started using it. He explained to me that this model of Luscomb was required to apply Carburetor Heat for take off. I never knew that. The check list is still the most important thing to assure a safe flight.
When I was instructing in San Diego. The FAA sent an older pilot to me for some instruction in his A36. First time his wing clipped a sign. Soon after that the pilot landed at night with the gear up. The pilot was so far behind the plane. It was down right sad.
I had a PA 60-602 and used it in a Part 135 of which I was also a Check Airman. Fastest thing between two Avgas pumps
That’s like making a big Mac and forgetting to put the hamburger patty on it. Why wasn’t there some sort of audible warning? Was he at a tower controlled airport with other pilots operating in the area who would have seen it? The pilot in command bears the responsibility of following that checklist. Sounds like a little retraining is in order. But, like they say, “if you walk away from it, it’s a good landing?” I don’t buy into that either. MI mom
What a waste of an airplane!
GUMP. I use this saying on every landing I make. Gas Undercarriage Mixture Prop.
Anyone that would abuse a Ted Smith Aerostar derivative deserves to never be allowed to fly again!! Sad end to a beautiful plane.
There are them that have and them that will. I have always used BGUMPS. Usually at the FAF, but also do so on final just before landing because a straight in Long approach can get you.
You should always do the GUMP check
Gas ,Under carriage, Mixture,Pitch
I seem to recall a handy-dandy little thing called a “checklist” that reminds you to lower the gear and things like that. Maybe next time he’ll remember to use it.
That’s snarky
Ehh, not always when you’re just flying pattern touch and go’s.
If the insurance company will give him a chance
That sounds good on paper but not done on most touch & go”s., arm chair dude.
There’s also a Config warning and a terrain alarm that should have been blaring to warn him.
GUMPS
Gas
Undercarriage
Mixture
Prop or Props
Safety
Yup always follow the checklist no matter how many times you’ve done it. That’s what they’re there for and would’ve avoided this costly incident. It fall under the heading of ‘Pre Landing Checklist’
Your turn is coming
Yes, the checklist would be a nice way to start. I am wonder why an alarm had not began once the flaps went past approach. If the pilot was doing no flap landings, then you go back to a checklist as previously stated. Sad, looks like a nice aircraft.