No fatalities

Gear-up landing of Piper PA24-260 in West Palm Beach

West Palm Beach, FL, United States

On March 5, 2008, a Piper PA24-260 operated by Michael J. Collins was involved in an aviation accident near West Palm Beach, FL. No fatalities were reported. Investigators recorded the probable cause as: The pilot failed to follow the prescribed checklist, which led to the landing gear being left in the up position during landing. This summary draws on records from NTSB; 1 related events involving the same aircraft type or operator are linked below.

SourcesNTSBPrimary reportUpdated 2026-08-03Data APIEditorial standards

A Piper PA24-260 aircraft experienced a gear-up landing on runway 31 after the pilot failed to verify the landing gear position.

What happened

On March 5, 2008, a Piper PA24-260, registration N9126P, was cleared to land on runway 27 at West Palm Beach, Florida. During the approach, the pilot made an incorrect turn and subsequently landed on runway 31. The pilot did not utilize the aircraft checklist or visually confirm that the landing gear was in the down position prior to touchdown, resulting in a gear-up landing. There were no injuries resulting from the accident.

The investigation

An examination of the aircraft conducted by the FAA revealed that the airplane sustained structural damage to the bulkhead.

Probable cause

The pilot failed to follow the prescribed checklist, which led to the landing gear being left in the up position during landing.

Contributing factors

Causes

Pilot

Other contributing factors

Runway/land/takeoff/taxi surfa