Piper PA-34-220T Nose Gear Retraction Incident at Palma de Mallorca (EC-EYV)

Incident Overview and Flight Details On April 12, 2001, at 12:50 local time, a Piper PA-34-220T with registration EC-EYV was involved in an incident at Son San Joan Airport in Palma de Mallorca. The aircraft, operated by Top-Fly, S. L., was on a general aviation pleasure flight from Sabadell. It landed normally on runway 06L. During the braking phase to turn onto taxiway N-5 near gate D, the nose gear retracted, causing the aircraft to slide approximately 10 meters before coming to a stop. ## Damage and Injuries The incident resulted in significant damage to the aircraft, primarily affecting the nose gear, the lower front fuselage, and the propeller blades, which struck the ground. Both the pilot and one passenger on board were uninjured. ## Aircraft and Maintenance Background The aircraft was a 1982 Piper PA-34-220T with serial number 34-8233109, powered by two Continental TSIO-360-KB4 engines. At the time of the incident, the aircraft had 5,135 total flight hours. The pilot held a commercial pilot license with 1,500 total hours and 500 hours on type. Maintenance records indicated that the aircraft had undergone a 1,000-hour inspection on January 23, 2001. However, a required replacement of the AN7-35 bolt, mandated by Airworthiness Directive 93-24-14 every 500 hours, had not been performed. The maintenance company later confirmed that the bolt had not been replaced at the required intervals, although it was not fractured at the time of the incident. ## Probable Cause The probable cause of the incident was a misadjusted nose gear sensor. This sensor provided a false indication of the gear being extended and locked, while simultaneously stopping the electric pump that operated the gear extension system before the nose gear was fully deployed. The pilot reported seeing three green lights indicating the gear was down and locked, which would have stopped the pump if the sensor was misadjusted.