What happened
On September 4, 2012, a BEECH 95-55, registration N4QC, was performing an approach at Spanoway, Washington. Following the initial approach, the pilot executed a go-around, during which the landing gear and flaps were raised.
On the subsequent second approach, the pilot partially lowered the flaps but failed to lower the landing gear. The pilot reported that he did not believe the gear warning system had activated. The aircraft landed with the landing gear in the up position. Following the touchdown, the aircraft caught fire, though the pilot and passenger were not injured and successfully exited the aircraft before the fire caused substantial damage to the cabin.
The investigation
The investigation focused on the configuration of the aircraft during the second approach and the functionality of the gear warning system. It was determined that while the flaps were partially extended, the landing gear remained retracted during the landing phase.