On August 17, 1985, a Piper PA-30/A (registration N7126Y) was involved in an aviation accident near Bowman, ND. This summary draws on records from the U.S. National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) historical archive.
A pilot landed gear-up after a circuit breaker failure prevented the gear warning horn from sounding during a throttle retard check on final approach.
Incident Overview
A pilot experienced a gear-up landing after a sequence of events involving the aircraft's landing gear warning system. The pilot reported being aware of the gear-up condition at one point during the traffic pattern. On final approach, she retarded the throttle(s) to check for the gear warning horn, but no horn sounded. Based on this, she assumed the landing gear was down and locked.
Post-Landing Findings
After the gear-up landing, examination of the aircraft revealed that the circuit breaker for the landing gear system had popped. This explained the lack of warning horn activation when the throttle was retarded, as well as the gear's failure to deploy and lock.
Pilot Reflection
The pilot commented that she needed to learn to ignore distractions and fight complacency in her future flights. No other factors or causes were identified in the report.