What happened
On Thursday, February 28, 2002, at 17:25, a SOCATA TB 20 aircraft, registered F-GNCL, was conducting a training flight at Auch Aerodrome (AD Auch) when it experienced a gear-up landing on runway 19. The flight crew consisted of an instructor and a student pilot.
During the flight, the instructor instructed the student to perform an engine failure drill. While positioned in a close downwind pattern, the student manipulated the landing gear lever. The instructor observed the student moving the gear lever and reminded the student to verify airspeed before extending the flaps and gear. As the aircraft crossed the runway threshold, the student reduced engine power. During the short final approach, the student extended the flaps to 40 degrees and initiated the flare. At this moment, an alarm sounded. The aircraft touched down with the landing gear retracted and came to a stop on the runway centerline. The propeller, flaps, and the lower portion of the fuselage sustained damage during the impact.
The investigation
The investigation focused on why the landing gear remained retracted despite the student's maneuvers. Two primary hypotheses were examined regarding the gear lever movement. The first possibility was that the gear remained retracted following a previous exercise, and the student inadvertently retracted the gear instead of extending it during the downwind leg. In this scenario, the lack of a landing gear warning alarm during the initial power reduction could be explained if the manifold pressure remained above the alarm threshold. The alarm only triggered during the flare when the flaps were extended or power was further reduced.
Alternatively, the investigation considered that the gear was correctly extended during the downwind leg, but the student inadvertently retracted it during the short final approach. The instructor noted that during the final approach, his attention was focused on monitoring the descent path and airspeed, which may have prevented him from noticing the gear retraction.
Findings
- The investigation identified that the landing gear was not extended for landing.
- The crew's focus on the flight path led to incomplete pre-landing checks.
- The use of the