AN A33'S GEAR COLLAPSED AFTER TOUCHDOWN. NO GEAR DOWN LIGHTS ILLUMINATED IN COCKPIT BUT OBSERVER RPTED GEAR APPEARED DOWN AND LOCKED.

Narrative

FRIEND WAS REPOSITIONING HIS AIRPLANE FROM MAINT FACILITY AT ONE ARPT TO HIS HOME ARPT 6 MI AWAY. I OBSERVED HIM DOING HIS PREFLT USING THE CHKLIST WHILE TALKING TO A FRIEND A FEW HANGARS DOWN WHO WAS GOING TO FOLLOW US UP TO THE OTHER ARPT; HELP US PUT THE AIRPLANE AWAY; AND THEN BRING THE OWNER BACK TO HIS VEHICLE AT THE ORIGINAL ARPT. AFTER STARTING ENG; DISCOVERED THERE WAS NO HEADSET FOR ME; SO WE BORROWED ONE FROM THE CHASE PLANE. DURING PRE-TKOF CHKS; I WAS WATCHING OIL TEMP AND NEW AVIONICS AND NOT PAYING ATTN. ON TKOF ROLL; IT SEEMED HE HELD IT ON A LITTLE LONG AND WHEN I GLANCED AT THE AIRSPD INDICATOR I SAID AIRSPD INDICATOR IS NOT WORKING (IT WAS LOW) AND ABOUT THEN HE ROTATED. I DID NOT THINK THERE WAS ROOM TO GET THE AIRPLANE OFF THE GND (I HAD NO CTLS; IT WAS A BONANZA WITH SWING OVER). I WATCHED ATTITUDE AND PWR. HE DID NORMAL AFTER TKOF CHKS. ON XWIND; AIRPLANE FELT MUSHY AND LIKE GEAR DIDN'T COME UP. NO UP LIGHT OBSERVED. I WATCHED FOR TFC AND BUZZARDS ON DOWNWIND AND HE CALLED CHASE PLANE TO CHK GEAR. I DID NOT CHK CIRCUIT BREAKERS ON HIS SIDE OF PANEL; BUT MINE WERE IN. I THOUGHT THAT WAS ALL OF THEM. CHASE PLANE AT DEP END RPTED GEAR LOOKED DOWN AND LOCKED. GEAR FOLDED AFTER TOUCHDOWN. HOW PROB AROSE: FIRST AIRSPD; THEN GEAR PROB. HOW DISCOVERED: MUSHY PERFORMANCE; NO GEAR LIGHT. CONTRIBUTING FACTORS: AIR BLUSTERY; OTHER ACFT USING PATTERN FOR CORVAIR ENG FLY-IN. BUZZARDS AT PATTERN ALT ON DOWNWIND. DID NOT HEAR A GEAR WARNING HORN AT 15 INCHES MANIFOLD PRESSURE OR PRIOR TO TOUCHDOWN (POSSIBLY BECAUSE PWR NOT BACK ENOUGH). JUDGEMENTS: I SHOULD HAVE ASKED FRIEND TO SWITCH CTLS OVER TO MY SIDE; CLBED TO ALT AND TROUBLESHOT PROB. PLT ON GND WHO SAID GEAR WAS DOWN AND LOCKED WAS AN EXPERIENCED PLT WITH LOTS OF COMPLEX TIME; BUT I SHOULD NOT HAVE BELIEVED HIM WITHOUT A GEAR LIGHT. FACTORS AFFECTING PERFORMANCE: THROW OVER YOKE HAD ONLY PUSH-TO-TALK SWITCH; SO I WAS NOT COMMUNICATING WITH GND. MY HEADSET HAD TO BE REPOSITIONED IN JACK TO STAY LISTENING TO CONVERSATION (WIGGLED). CALLBACK CONVERSATION WITH RPTR REVEALED THE FOLLOWING INFO: ANALYST CALLED RPTR TO DETERMINE ACFT TYPE SINCE THAT WAS EXCLUDED FROM THE RPT. RPTR ALSO STATED THAT THE PROP AND ENG WERE DAMAGED. THE AIRFRAME SUSTAINED MINOR DAMAGE.