What happened
On November 28, 2020, a Cessna 210 Centurión, registration LV-JLF, was performing a general aviation flight at Valle del Conlara International Airport in San Luis, Argentina. After completing two transit circuits, the pilot attempted to land the aircraft. However, the aircraft made contact with the runway with its landing gear still in the retracted position.
The impact caused the propeller blades to deform and resulted in the sudden stoppage of the engine. The lower portion of the cowling and the fuselage sustained significant damage. Despite the impact, the pilot and passengers were able to exit the aircraft uninjured.
The investigation
Investigators from the JST examined the aircraft, which was found in a hangar on jacks. While the investigators were unable to verify the functionality of the audible landing gear warning horn—as this system requires the engine to be running and power to be below 12 inches—they were able to test the landing gear using the emergency extension system. This test confirmed that the gear could reach the down-and-locked position and that the green and amber indicator lights functioned correctly.
The pilot reported that during the initial approach to runway 20, the gear lever was moved to the down position and power was reduced. The pilot noted that the audible warning did not sound when power was reduced below 12 inches, and the gear failed to extend. During the subsequent approach and final segments, the pilot focused on maintaining proper altitude and airspeed, failing to monitor the gear position lights or the visual verification mirror located under the left wing.
Findings
- The pilot focused on flight parameters such as altitude and speed, which led to a failure to verify the landing gear position via the cockpit lights or the external wing mirror.
- The aircraft's checklist requires the pilot to verify that the landing gear is down and that the lever is locked and green lights are illuminated after moving the lever.
- The pilot's failure to adhere to the established checklist prevented the detection of the gear's retracted state before touchdown.
- It could not be definitively determined if the audible landing gear warning horn was malfunctioning.