Summary
A twin-engine aircraft being ferried from Grand Junction, Colorado, to Chicago, Illinois, with an en route stop at Denver, Colorado, experienced a landing gear malfunction after takeoff from Denver. During the return to Denver, the aircraft suffered partial engine power loss and made a hard landing, breaking the left wing. Both occupants escaped uninjured.
Incident Details
The pilot attempted to retract the landing gear after takeoff but was unsuccessful. After several attempts, he decided to return to Denver. On final approach, the right engine began surging, and the left engine failed to increase power. The aircraft made a hard landing on the runway, resulting in structural damage to the left wing.
Investigation Findings
Post-incident examination revealed that the speed levers on both engines were inoperative because the propeller governor and underspeed fuel governor reset arms were positioned on the opposite side of the speed lever actuating arms. The landing gear functioned normally during subsequent swing tests, indicating no mechanical fault with the gear itself. It was later learned that the right main tire had blown on takeoff three days earlier, requiring repair. At that time, maintenance personnel had opened the landing gear circuit breakers to prevent inadvertent gear retraction. The pilot stated that he checked the circuit breakers when the gear failed to retract.
Official findings identified multiple causes across three occurrences. In the first occurrence (takeoff), the circuit breakers were not engaged, maintenance was inadequate, the pilot's preflight was inadequate, both pilots lacked familiarity with the aircraft, the landing gear was inoperative, and the gear indicating system provided false indications. In the second occurrence (approach), the pilot did not follow the checklist, the propeller governor control linkage was incorrect, and maintenance personnel had not corrected this issue; other maintenance personnel provided inadequate service. In the third occurrence (landing), the pilot allowed the airspeed to drop below the reference speed, was diverted in attention, and inadvertently stalled the aircraft.