This March 2010 accident report is provided by the National Transportation Safety Board. Published as an educational tool, it is intended to help pilots learn from the misfortunes of others.
Aircraft: Piper Twin Comanche. Injuries: None. Location: Baltimore, Maryland. Aircraft damage: Substantial.
What reportedly happened: The pilot said he had 26 hours of flight time in the accident airplane, but that it was two years before the accident and he had not flown the airplane since.
About a week before the accident, he obtained his multi-engine rating in a different make and model than the accident airplane. He said the purpose of the accident flight was to perform full-stop landings to familiarize himself with the Piper. While on the downwind leg of the traffic pattern for the first landing, he was cleared by air traffic control for a touch-and-go. After the airplane touched down, the pilot applied full power, and intended to retract the wing flaps, but inadvertently retracted the landing gear instead. The landing gear collapsed, and the airplane slid to a stop on its underside. Both wings were substantially damaged.
Probable cause: The pilot’s inadvertent retraction of the landing gear during a touch-and-go landing. Contributing to the accident was the pilot’s lack of recent experience in the make and model airplane.
For more information: NTSB.gov. NTSB Identification: ERA10CA183
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