Incident Overview
On 13 January 1998 at 2020 hours UTC, a Piper PA-34-200-2, registration G-EXEC, was on a positioning flight from Maastricht to its base at Stapleford Tawney Airfield in Essex. The aircraft was conducting a public transport flight with a single pilot on board and no passengers.
Approach and Landing
As the pilot initiated the final approach for Runway 22L, the tower advised that the wind was 160° at 12 knots. During the flare, the pilot reported experiencing "some sort of windshear" as the main landing gear contacted the ground. The aircraft touched down drifting to the right. The pilot corrected with rudder, but realized that the right main landing gear was damaged and collapsing, as the right propeller was contacting the ground. The pilot shut down both engines as the aircraft veered to the right off the tarmac onto grass Runway 22R. There was no fire, and the pilot evacuated the aircraft normally.
Damage
Inspection revealed that the right main landing gear had suffered severe damage to the sidestay assembly, which allowed the leg to fold. The steel lower link assembly had broken in a specific area, and the 1/2 inch bolt attaching it to the leg had bent through approximately 35°. One of the lugs on the aluminium upper sidestay had also torn off. Additionally, damage occurred to the right propeller, wing, and flap. Evidence of distress was also seen on the left landing gear assembly, but no failures had occurred there.
Pilot Information
The commander, aged 29, held a Commercial Pilot's Licence with Instrument Rating. His total flying experience was 1,488 hours, of which 298 were on type. In the last 90 days he flew 118 hours, and in the last 28 days, 15 hours.
Investigation
The information for this report was sourced from the Aircraft Accident Report Form submitted by the pilot and subsequent inquiries by the Air Accidents Investigation Branch (AAIB).