What happened
On 28 September 2012, a Piper PA-23-250 Aztec, registration G-BKJW, was performing a routine landing on Runway 24 at Southend Airport following a private local flight. The weather conditions were favorable, with a surface wind of 17 knots from 240°. Prior to touchdown, the pilot had confirmed the landing gear was down and locked via the green indicator lights and visual inspection of the nose gear.
The landing proceeded normally until the final stages of the landing roll. As the aircraft was traveling at approximately 15 kt, the pilot applied wheel braking. At this moment, the gear warning horn activated, and within a few seconds, the nose landing gear began moving toward the retracted position. This caused the nose of the aircraft to descend until both propellers struck the runway surface. The aircraft came to a halt within roughly 20 meters of the point of impact. All five occupants, including the pilot and four passengers, were uninjured.
The investigation
Following the incident, the aircraft was inspected by a local maintenance and repair organization. The investigation focused on the undercarriage system to determine why the nose gear failed to remain locked. During the examination, several extension and retraction cycles were performed on the landing gear. On every attempt, the system successfully achieved a positive downlock and displayed the green indicator lights for all three landing gear legs. Consequently, the specific cause of the gear movement during the landing roll remained undetermined.
Findings
- The aircraft sustained damage to the propellers and the nose section, and the engines were subject to shockloading.
- The nose landing gear moved toward the retracted position during the landing roll following the application of wheel braking.