Narrative
During a multi-engine class certification check ride, the applicant pilot had completed his multi-engine training in a Piper PA23-160. The cockpit of the PA23 has the landing gear selector handle on the right side of the power quadrant and the flap selector on the left. Prior to the flight test, the PA23 was in the maintenance shop, so the applicant was given a Piper PA39 for the check ride. In the PA39 cockpit, the landing gear selector handle is on the left side of the power quadrant and the flap selector on the right.
The examiner stated that during the traffic pattern, he personally checked that the landing gear handle was in the DOWN position, with three green indicator lights illuminated. The aircraft made a normal landing. During the landing roll out, the examiner's attention was distracted momentarily while locating the radio microphone. When he looked up again, he saw the aircraft settling down on the runway with the landing gear selector handle in the UP position.
According to the applicant pilot's statement, he was reaching for the flap handle to retract the landing flaps and mistakenly moved the gear handle instead.
Probable Cause
The pilot mistakenly moved the landing gear selector handle instead of the flap handle while attempting to retract the landing flaps after landing.
Findings
The difference in cockpit configuration between the PA23 (gear on right, flaps on left) and the PA39 (gear on left, flaps on right) contributed to the pilot's error. The examiner's momentary distraction also played a role in the sequence of events.