Summary
On 9 June 2019, at approximately 19:00 UTC, a Piper PA-28-200 aircraft, registration LV-LMG, landed on runway 05 at Los Toldos airfield (Buenos Aires, Argentina) after a local training flight. During the landing roll, the nose landing gear began to retract, causing the propeller to contact the ground. The aircraft came to a stop on the runway, and the occupants exited without injuries. Afterwards, the pilot and aeroclub personnel moved the aircraft to a hangar.
Event Details
The aircraft was owned and operated by Aeroclub General Viamonte. The flight was conducted under general aviation training operations. According to the pilot interview, the landing was normal until the nose gear folded during the rollout. A flight instructor waiting at the holding point of runway 05 observed the landing and reported that the approach and touchdown appeared normal. The instructor stated that the landing gear was down during the final approach.
Investigation
The accident was reported on 17 June 2019. Investigators visited the airfield to inspect the aircraft, gather information, and interview the pilot and the witness instructor. The inspection revealed substantial damage to the lower engine cowling and the propeller due to contact with the ground. The nose landing gear hydraulic cylinder was found broken. To test the landing gear system, the aircraft was placed on jacks and powered. With maintenance assistance, the landing gear lever was manually cycled to both the up and down positions. The position indicator lights operated correctly: three green lights illuminated when the gear was selected down.
Findings
Examination of the nose landing gear downlock hook revealed that the installed hook differed from the part illustrated in the aircraft parts catalog and service manual. The maintenance organization that routinely serviced the aircraft (Taller Aeronáutico de Reparaciones) could not confirm the applicability of the installed hook. A query was sent to the National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) as the state of manufacture, which forwarded the question to the aircraft manufacturer. The investigation determined that the nose gear collapse was likely due to the non-standard downlock hook, but no explicit probable cause was stated in the report.