Incident Overview
A pilot reported that the landing was uneventful until the left main landing gear 'broke' on touchdown. The airplane subsequently veered to the left, contacting a taxiway information sign. The nose gear then collapsed before the airplane came to rest.
Damage and Inspection
The left main landing gear strut collapsed rearward, resulting in damage to the left wing aft spar. Inspection of the left main landing gear revealed that the upper and lower portions of the scissors link had detached from each other. This detachment allowed the lower portion of the strut to rotate within the upper portion.
Scissors Link Assembly Details
Examination of the scissors link assembly showed that the bolt, washers, bushings, nut, and cotter pin remained attached to the upper link. Three washers were present near the head of the bolt; all were painted white and had an outside diameter of 3/4 inch. Four washers were present at the castellated nut end of the bolt, none of which were painted, and all had an outside diameter of 9/16 inch. This 9/16-inch diameter matched the outside diameter of the bushing and the inside diameter of the hole on the scissors link.