What happened
On 15 November 2003, a PIPER PA23-250, registered ZS-NWO, was involved in a landing accident at Wonderboom Aerodrome. The aircraft had recently undergone a mandatory period inspection (MPI) following an eight-month period of inactivity. Following the inspection, the pilot conducted a series of stall and turn maneuvers within the general flying area before attempting to return to the aerodrome.
During the approach to runway 29, the pilot believed the landing gear had been selected to the down position. However, the gear was not properly locked. As the aircraft entered the flare, the unsafe warning horn activated, alerting the pilot to the configuration error. By this stage, the aircraft was too low to safely execute a go-around. Consequently, the aircraft impacted the runway on its belly, skidding for roughly 400 meters before coming to a halt. There were 0 fatalities and 0 injuries among the two occupants.
The investigation
SACAA AIID investigators examined the circumstances surrounding the flight and the aircraft's recent maintenance history. The investigation confirmed that the aircraft's MPI had been completed on 31 October 2003, with only 0.8 flight hours logged since that certification. The pilot held a valid Commercial Pilot’s license and was properly rated for the aircraft type. The investigation focused on the pilot's cockpit procedures during the transition from maneuvers to the landing phase.
Findings
- The pilot failed to perform a thorough pre-landing checklist.
- The pilot neglected to verify that the landing gear was down and locked by failing to monitor the landing gear indicator lights.
- The aircraft sustained damage to the propeller flaps and the ADF antenna during the runway excursion.