What happened
On February 26, 2026, a Tecnam P2006T registered as SP-AVE was conducting a flight from EPGL to EPRU. The aircraft carried an instructor pilot and two passenger pilots. During the approach to runway 26C via a left-hand traffic pattern, the crew heard a transmission from another aircraft on a right-hand pattern to the same runway. To maintain separation, they continued to the third turn before shortening the final approach segment.
Upon entering the final approach, the landing gear lever was moved to the down position. However, the standard landing checklist was not performed; instead, it was recited from memory without verifying instrument indications. The instructor pilot reported hearing an audible signal during the turn to final, which he interpreted as a low-speed warning. He checked the airspeed indicator, reading approximately 65 KIAS, and increased engine power. All crew members confirmed that no specific alert regarding the landing gear position was heard during the final phase of the approach.
The aircraft made contact with the runway surface without the landing gear extended. Immediately after touchdown, the pilots reduced power to idle and feathered the propellers. The aircraft came to a stop on the runway. Engines were shut down, electrical systems were disconnected, and the gear lever was moved to the up position. No injuries were reported among the occupants.
The investigation
The Polish State Commission for Investigation of Aviation Accidents (PKBWL) reviewed the final report submitted by the investigating entity. The Commission accepted the findings as sufficient to conclude the investigation under applicable aviation laws and regulations.
Findings
The probable cause was identified as the failure of the pilot to move the power lever to the idle position and hold it there momentarily. This specific action is required to activate the warning signal for the landing gear. Without this step, the audible alert did not trigger.
A contributing factor was the design of the aircraft's audio warning system. The same tone, used for both low-speed warnings and gear-up alerts, was emitted at a lower intensity for the gear warning. This made it difficult to distinguish from engine noise and radio communications, leading to misinterpretation by the crew.