Accident Overview
On June 24, 2019, at approximately 1025 mountain daylight time, a Piper PA-24 airplane, registration N5866P, was substantially damaged during a landing accident near Greeley, Colorado. The private pilot and passenger were not injured. The flight was conducted as a personal flight under Title 14 Code of Federal Regulations Part 91.
Sequence of Events
The pilot reported completing an uneventful touch-and-go landing and planned the next landing as a full-stop. During the landing touchdown, the pilot stated that the airplane's right wing “dipped” and the nose veered to the left. The airplane subsequently exited the runway surface, struck a taxiway light, and continued into the grass on the south side of the runway, where it came to rest.
A flight instructor who witnessed the accident observed that, during the landing, the nose landing gear contacted the runway first, causing the airplane to bounce and become airborne again before he lost sight of it.
Examination Findings
Post-accident examination of the airplane revealed that the side brace stud of the right main gear side brace upper link assembly was disconnected from the main gear side brace support fitting assembly. The roll pin inserted through the threading on the stud that connected to the support fitting was sheared, and the threads of the stud were stripped. Additionally, the push/pull cable assembly arm that connects to the main gear side brace upper link assembly and actuates the landing gear was bent upward. No mechanical anomalies that would have precluded normal operation of the landing gear were found.