No fatalities

1978-08-08: Beechcraft D18 (N79R) — Blackhawk Airways — Chicago-O'Hare, United States of America

Chicago-O'Hare, United States of AmericaLanding (descent or approach)

On August 8, 1978, a Beechcraft D18 (registration N79R) operated by Blackhawk Airways was involved in an aviation accident near Chicago-O'Hare, United States of America during landing or approach. No fatalities were reported. Investigators recorded the probable cause as: The landing gear collapsed due to structural overload following a hard landing and unsuccessful recovery from multiple bounces caused by an improper level-off. This summary draws on records from the Bureau of Aircraft Accidents Archives (B3A); 2 related events involving the same aircraft type or operator are linked below.

Sourcesthe Bureau of Aircraft Accidents Archives (B3A)Primary reportUpdated 1781226339Data APIEditorial standards

A single-engine aircraft experienced a gear collapse and subsequent crash landing following an unsuccessful attempt to level off during the approach.

What happened

During the final stages of flight, the twin engine airplane failed to maintain the correct altitude due to an improper level-off maneuver. This error resulted in a heavy impact with the runway surface. Following the initial hard landing, the aircraft bounced multiple times across the landing area.

As the aircraft continued its movement, the undercarriage failed and collapsed. The resulting loss of structural support led to a crash landing. At the time of the incident, the pilot was the only person on board the aircraft. Despite the severity of the impact and the subsequent collapse, the pilot escaped the accident without any injuries.

Findings

Investigations into the accident identified that the sequence of events began with the failure to properly level the aircraft during its descent. The subsequent hard landing and the inability to recover from the resulting bounces placed excessive stress on the landing gear. A significant contributing factor noted in the findings was an overload failure which led to the collapse of the undercarriage.

Probable cause

The landing gear collapsed due to structural overload following a hard landing and unsuccessful recovery from multiple bounces caused by an improper level-off.