What happened
On 12 February 2019, a Piper PA-34-200T, registration EC-EPR, was conducting a training flight at Córdoba Airport. The flight, part of a multi-engine instrument flight rating course, included various instrument maneuvers and a series of takeoffs and landings.
Following a previous landing, the student pilot had retracted the landing gear. During the subsequent approach to runway 03, the crew was managing traffic from other aircraft in the circuit. While performing the flare, an aural warning sounded in the cockpit. The crew mistakenly identified this sound as a stall warning, which they considered normal given the low speed during the landing phase.
As the aircraft descended, the crew realized the aircraft was sinking more rapidly than expected. The engines ceased operation after the propeller blades made contact with the asphalt. The aircraft skidded approximately 200 meters along the runway before coming to a stop on the left side of the runway. There were no injuries to the two occupants, and the aircraft sustained minor damage to the propeller and the underside of the fuselage.
The investigation
The CIAIAC investigation examined the flight history, crew qualifications, and cockpit events. The investigation established that the crew held all necessary licenses and medical certificates, and the aircraft was properly documented and maintained.
Investigators analyzed the cockpit environment, specifically the crew's reaction to the aural warning. It was determined that the crew had failed to perform the complete before-landing checklist, which would have identified the gear's status. Furthermore, the investigation focused on the crew's misinterpretation of the cockpit's auditory alerts during the critical landing phase.