What happened
On 07 June 2005, a Piper PA-34, registration ZS-JOC, was conducting a training flight involving an instructor, a student, and one passenger. The flight departed from Wonderboom Aerodrome (FAWB) for a planned 1.5-hour session in the general flying area. Upon returning to the aerodrome, the crew intended to perform several circuits and landings.
During the initial landing attempt on runway 29, the aircraft made a normal touchdown on both main landing gears. However, as the nose gear made contact with the runway, the gear assembly collapsed. Following the incident, the pilot maneuvered the aircraft to the left to clear the runway and prevent an obstruction. There were no fatalities and no injuries sustained by the occupants.
The investigation
SACAA AIID examined the mechanical state of the aircraft and the maintenance history of ZS-JCC. The investigation confirmed that the landing gear configuration indicators showed three green lights, signifying that the gear was down and locked prior to touchdown.
Records indicated that the most recent mandatory periodical inspection (MPI) had been completed on 17 January 2005, at 3,634.14 flying hours. At the time of the accident, the aircraft had flown an additional 66.84 hours since that inspection. While the aircraft owner's questionnaire attributed the collapse to a mechanical failure, the specific component or mechanism that failed could not be identified during the inquiry.