What happened
On 13 June 2002, a BEECH 95-B55, registered ZS-KHC, was conducting a private flight from a farm strip near Hoopstad toward New Tempe aerodrome near Bloemfontein. During the approach for Runway 28, the pilot attempted to extend the landing gear but observed that only two green lights illuminated in the cockpit, signifying that the main gear was locked but the nose gear remained retracted.
In an attempt to rectify the situation, the pilot cycled the gear multiple times. After receiving confirmation from the tower that the nose wheel was not extended, the pilot climbed to 6,000 feet to attempt further gear cycles. Despite following the emergency gear extension procedures outlined in the Pilot’s Operating Handbook and performing several steep turns to use centrifugal force to assist the deployment, the nose gear remained stuck. Consequently, the pilot opted to perform a controlled forced landing on the main wheels. The aircraft touched down at approximately 70 knots, maintaining a high nose attitude. The nose eventually made contact with the runway, skidding for about 57 meters before coming to a stop. There were no injuries to the sole occupant.
The investigation
SACAA AIID investigators examined the mechanical state of the landing gear assembly to determine why the nose wheel failed to deploy. The investigation focused on the physical condition of the gear-actuating components and the sequence of events leading to the mechanical blockage.
Findings
- The investigation determined that the failure of the nose gear-actuating rod was the primary cause of the incident.
- The rod likely suffered an overload failure, resulting in a ductile fracture.
- This fracture was attributed to an unidentified event that placed excessive stress on the weakest part of the assembly.
- The broken section of the rod assembly migrated within the wheel well, creating a physical obstruction that prevented the nose gear from extending.