What happened
On 04 August 2011, a private flight was underway from Newcastle Aerodrome to Virginia Aerodrome. The pilot, flying a Rutan Long EZ with registration ZS-USS, was the sole occupant of the aircraft. Upon approaching Virginia Aerodrome, the pilot attempted to deploy the landing gear but received no indication that the nose gear had extended.
After declaring an emergency, the pilot performed a go-around at the request of Air Traffic Control to allow the tower to visually confirm the gear position. The visual inspection confirmed the nose gear remained retracted. The pilot subsequently proceeded to land on Runway 05 with the nose gear up. During the landing roll, the pilot attempted to keep the nose wheel off the ground for as long as possible; however, the aircraft eventually made contact with the runway, causing the nose cone and the rubber stopper to sustain minor damage.
The investigation
Following the incident, the aircraft was moved to a maintenance facility for a technical inspection of the landing gear mechanism. Investigators examined the system to identify why the nose gear failed to deploy despite the pilot's commands.
Findings
- The weather conditions at the time of the incident were clear with excellent visibility.
- The aircraft was properly certified, equipped, and maintained according to all necessary regulations.
- The primary cause of the incident was a defective landing gear up and down limit switch, which prevented the nose gear from extending.