What happened
On April 30, 2009, a Diamond DA 42 Twin Star, registration F-HDAS, was conducting a flight test for a multi-engine instrument rating qualification at Béziers airport. The crew consisted of a pilot candidate, an instructor acting as pilot-in-command, and an examiner.
Following a takeoff and an initial approach, the instructor reduced power on the right engine as part of the flight test procedure. After the landing gear was retracted, the aircraft climbed to approximately 400 feet. The crew then began a right-hand circuit to perform a go-around on runway 28. During the final turn, the aircraft drifted off the runway centerline. As the pilot approached for landing, the instructor provided warnings regarding the handling characteristics of the aircraft due to its aft center of gravity and the lack of flaps. The aircraft subsequently landed approximately ten meters left of the runway centerline with the landing gear still retracted.
The impact resulted in broken propellers, damaged engine cowlings, and damaged steps.
The investigation
The investigation focused on why the landing gear remained retracted despite the presence of an audible warning. The crew noted that the cockpit environment was noisy, which hindered the detection of the abnormal situation. Specifically, the intermittent altitude alert from the autopilot—set to 3,000 feet—and the audible identification signal from the NDB beacon were active.
Furthermore, the instructor was preoccupied with managing radio communications. During the approach, the air traffic controller issued a departure clearance, which was then updated thirty seconds later. The instructor had to process both clearances, a task that the crew believed distracted from the effective monitoring of the pilot's actions.
Regarding the landing gear indication, the instructor and examiner reported that they observed the gear position lights during the final approach. However, because the lights were illuminated by direct sunlight, they incorrectly assumed the landing gear was extended.
Findings
- The primary cause of the accident was the insufficient monitoring of the pilot's actions by both the instructor and the examiner.
- The crew failed to perceive the audible landing gear warning, which had been active since the right engine power was reduced during the initial climb.
- The cockpit's acoustic environment, characterized by competing alerts and radio communications, contributed to the failure to detect the gear configuration error.
- Visual confirmation of the gear status was compromised by sunlight glare on the cockpit indicator lights.