Incident Overview
On March 13, 2019, at 1617 eastern daylight time, a Beech E55, N15VK, was substantially damaged during a gear-up landing at Albert Whitted Airport (SPG), St. Petersburg, Florida. The commercial pilot and a passenger were not injured. The airplane was operated by the pilot under 14 CFR Part 91 for a personal flight that had departed Lakeland Linder International Airport (LAL) at 1515. Visual meteorological conditions prevailed and no flight plan was filed.
Pilot Account
The pilot stated that he became distracted and did not extend the landing gear before landing. The airplane slid on the runway, resulting in substantial damage to the left wing's rear spar. The propellers and flaps were also damaged.
Aircraft and Gear Warning Horn
According to the Pilot Operating Handbook (POH), page 6-10, a warning horn sounds intermittently if either or both throttles are retarded below an engine setting sufficient to sustain flight with the landing gear retracted. The airplane was equipped with a gear warning horn; however, both the pilot and passenger reported that the horn did not sound. The horn had been functionally checked during the last annual inspection with no deficiencies noted, and it was tested after the accident and found to operate as designed.
Pilot Information
The pilot held a commercial pilot certificate with ratings for airplane single-engine land and sea, multi-engine land, and instrument airplane. He also held a certified flight instructor certificate with a rating for airplane single-engine land. His most recent FAA third-class medical certificate was issued on February 11, 2019. He reported a total flight time of 3,706 hours, of which 1,217 were in multi-engine aircraft.
Weather Conditions
Weather reported at SPG at 1653 included wind from 090° at 11 knots, visibility 10 miles, and clear skies.