Accident Overview
On January 23, 2008, at 1015 central standard time, a Beech 58, registration N4626A, operated by Flight Express, experienced a right main gear collapse upon landing at St. Louis/Downtown Airport (CPS) in Cahokia, Illinois. The commercial rated pilot was not injured. The airplane sustained substantial damage. The flight was conducted under 14 Code of Federal Regulations Part 91 in visual meteorological conditions without a flight plan. The local flight originated from CPS at 0920.
Sequence of Events
The accident flight was a maintenance test flight following the completion of an annual inspection. After departure, the pilot climbed to altitude to check flight controls and aircraft performance, cycling the landing gear several times with each cycle indicating down and locked. The pilot then flew to Scott Air Force Base/Mid-America Airport (BLV) to practice an approach and landing. During the landing roll, the pilot felt a falling motion to the back right, applied full power, and took off. He contacted the air traffic control tower to request a visual check of the landing gear; the controller reported the gear appeared down.
Returning to CPS, the pilot received a gear down and locked indication but noticed the right wing seemed closer to the ground than normal during the landing roll, prompting a second aborted landing. He again requested a visual check from the CPS tower; the controller stated the gear appeared down but looked weak during the landing roll. The pilot climbed to troubleshoot the landing gear, using the Emergency Gear Extension checklist. During manual extension, he could only turn the handle 1-1/2 turns. A subsequent fly-by for a gear check was performed, and the tower reported the gear appeared down. The pilot then used the Gear-Up Landing emergency checklist and landed. During the landing roll, the right main gear collapsed, and the right wing contacted the runway, resulting in substantial damage to the right wing and aileron.
Maintenance Background
The annual inspection included replacement of the leg brace portion of the landing gear retract brace assembly. The installed leg brace was not purchased from Beechcraft. Beechcraft stated they do not sell the leg brace as a separate item from the upper brace assembly due to the close tolerance required for proper locking in the extended position. The BE-58 maintenance manual specifies that for the nose gear, the upper brace assembly and leg brace must be replaced as a unit, but no such requirement is stated for the main landing gear.
Investigation Findings
A Federal Aviation Administration Inspector from the St. Louis, Missouri, Flight Standards District Office reported that after the accident, with the right gear extended, he was able to release it from the locked position by pushing on it with his hands.