On November 2, 1988, a Beech 58 (registration N958MC) operated by Ramp 66, Inc. was involved in an aviation accident near Georgetown, SC. This summary draws on records from the U.S. National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) historical archive; 8 related events involving the same aircraft type or operator are linked below.
A pilot reported a normal landing before the nose gear collapsed. Runway tire marks indicated multiple nose tire contacts after touchdown. Examination revealed a failed aft drag-link bracket assembly due to overstress, with no preexisting cracking.
Incident Description
The pilot reported that the nose gear collapsed following a landing described as normal. The aircraft had touched down on the runway and was rolling out when the nose gear failed.
Runway Evidence
An FAA inspector who examined the runway after the incident reported finding tire marks that indicated the nose tire had contacted the runway several times after the main tires had touched down. This suggested that the nose gear may have been subjected to repeated loads during the landing roll.
Examination Findings
Examination of the nose gear revealed that the aft drag-link bracket assembly had failed. A metallurgical examination of the fracture surfaces showed features typical of an overstress break. There was no evidence of preexisting cracking on the fracture surfaces, indicating that the failure occurred due to a single overload event rather than progressive fatigue.