No fatalities

5 Jul 2013: PIPER PA-44-180 — TransPac Aviation Academy — Casa Grande, AZ

Casa Grande, AZ, United States

On 5 Jul 2013, a PIPER PA-44-180 operated by TransPac Aviation Academy was involved in an aviation accident near Casa Grande, AZ. No fatalities were reported. Investigators recorded the probable cause as: The pilot's failure to extend the landing gear before landing. Contributing to the accident was the pilot's and the flight examiner's distracted attention. This summary draws on records from NTSB; 17 related events involving the same aircraft type or operator are linked below.

SourcesNTSBPrimary reportUpdated 1778583330Data APIEditorial standards

During a multi-engine check ride, an examiner simulated an engine failure, causing a landing gear warning horn to sound. The pilot, distracted by traffic, failed to extend the gear, resulting in a gear-up landing and substantial damage.

Accident Summary

A multi-engine check ride resulted in a gear-up landing after the pilot and examiner were distracted by other traffic. The pilot reported that the incident occurred during a simulated engine failure exercise. When the examiner retarded the throttle, the landing gear unsafe warning horn activated and continued sounding for the remainder of the flight.

Flight Details

Following the simulated engine failure, the pilot executed a simulated single-engine approach. He decided to delay extending the landing gear until the airplane was on the base leg of the traffic pattern. However, while turning to the base leg, he became distracted by radio calls from other traffic and omitted the gear extension. The examiner also reported focusing her attention on the other aircraft.

Landing and Damage

The airplane touched down with the landing gear retracted. It slid approximately 1,400 feet before coming to a stop. The fuselage sustained substantial damage. The pilot reported that there were no preimpact mechanical malfunctions or failures with the airplane that would have precluded normal operation.

Probable Cause

The source does not explicitly state a probable cause for the accident.

Contributing factors

Causes

Not used/operatedPilot

Other contributing factors

Designated examiner