What happened
On August 2, 2003, at 12:25 UTC, a Piper Malibu PA 46-310 P, registration D-EADC, performed a gear-up landing on runway 30 at Vysoké Mýto airport (LKVM). The aircraft, operated by KBH Produktions-Automation BmbH & Vertriebs, was conducting a local flight of approximately 15 minutes when the incident occurred.
During the landing maneuver, the pilot failed to extend the landing gear. The aircraft made contact with the asphalt runway approximately 145 meters from the threshold. As the aircraft continued along the runway, it drifted right, traveling 175 meters before veering further. After an additional 110 meters, the aircraft came to a stop on the right edge of the runway, having rotated approximately 120 degrees to the right and ended up on the grass.
The impact caused damage to the propeller, engine cowling, lower fuselage, exhausts, and antennas. There were no injuries to the pilot or the passenger on board.
The investigation
The ÚZPLN investigation, conducted in cooperation with the Czech Police, established that the pilot was fully qualified and held a valid license. The aircraft was also within its airworthiness period and had been maintained according to regulations. The meteorological conditions at the time were CAVOK with light winds, and the airport infrastructure was not a contributing factor to the accident.
The investigation focused on the sequence of events during the final approach. The pilot reported that during the final approach phase, a wasp entered the cockpit, causing a significant distraction. This distraction led the pilot to forget the critical task of extending the landing gear, a mistake the pilot only realized when the aircraft made contact with the runway surface.
Findings
- The primary cause of the accident was the reduction of pilot attention during critical landing procedures.
- A cockpit distraction, specifically the presence of a wasp, caused the pilot to lose focus on essential checklists.
- The landing gear remained retracted during the entire landing sequence.