Incident Summary
On 1 March 2003 at 1210Z, a Piper PA-30 aircraft registered ZS-DXL was involved in an incident at Rand Aerodrome. The flight was a private operation with one pilot on board. The weather was reported as fine. No injuries or fatalities occurred.
Sequence of Events
The pilot departed from Rand Aerodrome on a private flight to Pietersburg. Shortly after takeoff, the pilot noted that the airspeed was lower than normal and that the undercarriage failed to retract despite being selected to the up position. Attempts to recycle the undercarriage and extend it using the emergency system were unsuccessful.
Air Traffic Control (ATC) at Pietersburg advised the pilot during a fly-past that the undercarriage was not fully down and locked. The pilot then decided to return to Rand Aerodrome, where ATC confirmed the same condition.
The pilot landed the aircraft with the flaps retracted and the propellers feathered on Runway 11, which had been sprayed with foam. The fuselage under surface was subsequently damaged. Because the engines were shut down and the propellers turned to a horizontal position, the propellers sustained no damage.
Aircraft Damage
The aircraft damage was limited to the fuselage under surface. The propellers were undamaged.
Probable Cause
The right-hand main landing gear torque link bolt came adrift due to the fact that the bolt securing nut was not secured with a split pin, causing the main wheel to turn sideways and become stuck inside the wheel well. Metallurgical analysis confirmed that a split pin was not fitted and the bolt migrated out of position.