What happened
During a normal landing sequence, the right main landing gear strut of the aircraft failed upon touchdown. The student pilot and the instructor were able to execute a rejected landing immediately following the failure.
To reduce the weight of the aircraft for a safe return, the instructor flew the aircraft around the local area for three hours and forty-five minutes to burn off the remaining fuel load. During this period, witnesses observed that the right main landing gear was hanging from the aircraft, held only by the hydraulic brake line. While the aircraft was being flown around the local area, the right main landing gear fell free from the airframe.
Following the fuel burn, the aircraft was landed at Prescott with the landing gear in the up position.
The investigation
A post-accident inspection of the aircraft determined that the failure of the right main landing gear strut occurred at the trunion attach fitting. However, the landing gear assembly and the associated attach fittings were not available for a detailed examination to determine the specific failure mode.