The pilot told investigators that he was performing a short-field landing to the airport in Florala, Alabama, as part of a flight review.
Because he was focused on his intended point of touchdown, airspeed, flap position, and clearing the “simulated 50 foot obstacle,” he was distracted from the normal landing procedure.
Immediately before touchdown, the Piper PA-32R’s landing gear warning horn sounded and the landing was completed with the landing gear fully retracted.
The airplane sustained substantial damage to the lower fuselage.
The pilot reported that there were no mechanical malfunctions or failures with the airplane that would have prevented normal landing gear extension.
Probable Cause: The pilot’s failure to extend the landing gear before landing. Contributing to the accident was the flight instructor’s inadequate supervision of the flight.
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This November 2023 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.
From the report:
“Immediately before touchdown, the Piper PA-32R’s landing gear warning horn sounded…”
I imagine that a pilot might confuse that with the (not unexpected) sound of the Stall Warning Horn. Is there such a thing as an ‘audio simulator’ training app (specific to the airplane model) to educate and condition pilots to the different audible Warnings and Alerts ?
There seems to be a great disagreement over the culpability of the CFI in this accident. As a CFI myself, I can see no way he [or she] could have allowed it to happen. After all, if there is just a single MUST DO item in landing a retractable gear airplane, it would be ‘Gear down and locked with three green lights’. I can understand the pilot taking the flight review being distracted because it is a stressful regimen but NOT the CFI. His primary role per the FAA is ensuring SAFETY and secondarily TEACHING. He [or she] did neither.
When I began working towards my CFI rating, my instructor included gear down as part of my pre-landing checklist even though we were flying a Cessna 150. I believe this is a good practice for CFI’s even in initial pilot training to instill it into the student early on as no less important than the other items in the checklist.
Knew a fixed gear guy who bought a plane all the way across the country, not the best idea. Hired a CFI to fly back with him for the complex endorsement on the way. Arriving at our home field, you guessed it, landed with the gear safely stowed out of the way. The CFI promptly asked for his log book, signed off the endorsement and left. Pilot kept insisting he had put it down and it was a gear collapse although there was no damage to the gear doors and when the plane was picked up and the gear switch selected the gear fell right down. Gotta love it. True story. I was there.
The issue that everyone is overlooking is self-preservation. CFI or not, if I see something that could result in a crash that could injure or kill me, forget protocols or rules, I’m going to speak up. A belly landing forfeits all control. Who knows if it will nose over, skid sideways and hit something, rupture a fuel tank, catch fire, or trap me in the aircraft? Saying nothing is completely nuts.
This can happen easily enough–just keep talking and talking until the scraping noise drowns out the conversation. The scraping noise is a sign that you’re talking too much, so both parties should back off, talk less. Since doing a go-around isn’t an option, just sit in silence. Feel your blathering. Feel the babble. Hear that silence? First time? Usually you talk all the way into the flare, then while taxiing?
……..The FAA takes a dim view that the CFI just sat there and allowed the owner pilot land gear up.
Both pilots will probably get a 44709 review to see if they are still qualified for the the Certificate or Rating that they hold.
The CFI is PIC….He is responsible for the flight as well as that the aircraft is airworthy….
Role of the Instructor
Reference: AC 61-98
The instructor has two roles during the flight review: trainer and evaluator. Evaluation is the primary purpose, but training may be provided in weak areas. The flight review can be completed as long as the deficiencies are corrected and satisfactorily accomplished as the instructor evaluates.
If the additional training does not correct the deficiencies, and it becomes apparent to the instructor that additional flights will be necessary, the flight instructor should discuss the situation with the pilot and proceed accordingly.
The CFI’s role in a flight review is NOT passive. It is to be proactive regardless of who is PIC. Failing to lower the landing gear is a gross deficiency in performance. It is the CFI’s responsibility to address the deficiency, and in this situation, the root cause of the deficiency was the pilot’s failure to use a checklist. The instructor had an active responsibility to see the flight was conducted safely.
Furthermore, the official FAA term is simply “Flight Review”. The term was changed by the FAA to encourage pilots to think of the review as an ongoing part of maintaining proficiency, rather than a single event that needs to be completed only once every two years.
The blame is totally on the pilots shoulders, the CFI has nothing to do with the PIC forgetting to lower the landing gear, The CFI is an observer only not a fault eliminator, either you are or are not qualified to fly a retractable type airplane. No excuses !!!
Yup.!! the instructor was doing a BFR so the left seat pilot was PIC.!!
It is very sad that neither noted the gear was not down, missing multiple times to check…
From one CFI to another, the onus is on the instructor. The buck stops on the instructor’s desk. However, the pilot/owner is not absolved of any responsibility. His total time, and total time in make and model strongly suggests he should have known better.
I’ve had three pilots fail to put the landing gear down on a flight review. I let it go until short final then called a go around. One pilot had the audacity to accuse me of letting him land gear up. I don’t think so, I called the go around about 300 off the ground. When he reached for the gear handle it was up. Surprise!
Each flight ended with a lengthy debrief on the use of a checklist – what I consider a memory item – GUMP.
Yeah…that engine tear down/IRAN is going to sting.
Let’s take an informal poll: How many folks actually fly into a “short field” that has a 50-foot obstacle at the end of the runway?
I don’t know of any in CA.
But, if a 3 degree vasi is flown, the aircraft will be 50 ft above the threshold, with the aiming point 1,000 ft down the runway.
I fly a steeped final, since 3 degrees requires an 18:1 slops, so if the engine fails, the aircraft will not make the runway.
I fly a 5 degree final, an 11:1 slope… and at idle power.
Since a “Short Field” runway length isn’t defined, it is completely subjective.
I also fly a close-in traffic pattern with a steeper final approach, regardless of runway length.
Sure, using a 3-degree glide slope, and aiming 1,000’ down a 5,000’-long runway (like O46) will put you @ 50’ over the threshold.
But that’s not quite the same as using an aim point close to the runway threshold…maybe even short of it…so you can get down & stopped on a ‘short’ runway…while still clearing a “50-foot obstacle” that’s in the way…which is what the FAA wants to see demo’d.
Lesson to be learned — Always do a gumps check at short final. If the gear horn sounds upon pulling power and short final TOGA!!! (all levers forward, arrest sink rate Go around). The only time you don’t do TOGA is you know you have a gear problem and you have to land anyway.
CFI/Safety pilot doing a distraction should be “armed” with “Go Around” or “TOGA” if that GUMPS check is not done by short final.
[TOGA – Take Off / Go Around]
People who fly retractable landing gear airplanes…there are those who have landed gear up and those who will.
Seems the CFI had type ratings and worked for an airline……
Things happen and accidents will happen and why the instructor did not know if the gear was down or not is in question?
Damage is extensive with belly damage and prop as well as an engine with severe sudden stoppage…
I wonder if the CFI here could respond as to how it happened so we all could learn from this…
The main thing is no one was hurt and life goes on!…..
Thanks
Did he pass? /s
It seems ever since the FAA took the complex aircraft out of the certification process for the Commercial and CFI-A, Accidents like this are happening way too often…..
So the instructor as PIC is responsible………
My daily mantra: De-certify that instructor. Rinse, repeat as required. They are responsible for increasing insurance rates and for not preventing property damage and personal injury.
Regards/J
James, I thought at times that your responses might be a bit harsh, not considering that accidents happen. The problem is, there are too many of these accidents happening, especially the fuel exhaustion and gear up landings. Something has to be done to make safer pilots.
How can there be two people – one a CFI – and land the plane with the gear up? Ridiculous. Even as a non-certificated pilot, I helped run the checklist during flights, even with pilots who were also instructors. Nearly all of the guys I flew with over the years used any person in the aircraft as an additional set of eyes and a flight resource. Anybody who was a lone wolf, I never flew with twice.