Flight History
On 7 June 2023, a Piper 34-200T twin-engine aircraft, registration HK-5025, was scheduled for a maintenance repositioning flight from Juan José Roldón Airport (Paipa) to Olaya Herrera Airport (Medellín), Colombia, under VFR. The aircraft had been involved in a prior serious incident on 25 February 2023 when it departed the runway at Paipa; repairs were carried out before this flight. The crew performed a pre-flight inspection and departed approximately 12:30 local time.
Inflight Electrical Failure
About one hour later, near the Sierra de RENOS visual reporting point, the crew experienced an electrical system failure, initially affecting left-side equipment and then the entire system. Emergency procedures per the Pilot Operating Handbook were unsuccessful, and the aircraft lost all radio contact (NORDO). The crew used a mobile phone to communicate via another aircraft, which relayed the situation to Medellín control tower.
Landing Gear Emergency
Due to the electrical failure, the electro-hydraulic landing gear extension system was inoperative. The crew performed the manual extension procedure but could not confirm the nose gear was down and locked. Another aircraft reported that only the main landing gear was extended. After several unsuccessful attempts to free the nose gear, the decision was made to land. The tower activated airport emergency services.
Landing and Aftermath
The aircraft landed on runway 02 at Olaya Herrera with the nose gear retracted, resulting in substantial damage as it contacted the runway surface before coming to a stop at coordinates N 06°13'12.86" / W 75°35'25.14", with a final heading of 13° and elevation 1491 m MSL. The crew evacuated unaided and reported no injuries. Firefighters secured the aircraft for potential fuel or hydraulic leaks. There was no fire before or during the event.