Summary
On August 30, 2017, a Piper PA 31 (N4078J) was involved in an incident near Saipan, USA. All 7 people aboard were uninjured. The aircraft sustained substantial damage.
The National Transportation Safety Board determined the probable cause of this incident to be: Impact with multiple birds while retracting the landing gear, which resulted in the subsequent failure of the right inboard main landing gear door actuator hose and prevented the pilot from being able to extend the landing gear.
The pilot reported that during the initial climb, about 150 feet above the ground, while the landing gear was being retracted, the airplane impacted a flock of medium sized birds. He noted that the landing gear unlock indicator remained illuminated and the landing gear handle would not return to the up neutral position. No degradation of performance was noted, so the pilot choose to continue to his destination.
About 20 miles from the airport, the pilot attempted to lower the landing gear, but was unsuccessful. He contacted maintenance personnel on the ground and advised them of the landing gear issue. The ground maintenance personnel visually verified that the nose and right main landing gear were down.
This incident is documented in NTSB report GAA17CA570. AviatorDB cross-references NTSB investigation data with FAA registry records to provide comprehensive safety information for aircraft N4078J.
Accident Details
Probable Cause and Findings
Impact with multiple birds while retracting the landing gear, which resulted in the subsequent failure of the right inboard main landing gear door actuator hose and prevented the pilot from being able to extend the landing gear.
Aircraft Information
Registered Owner (Current)
Analysis
The pilot reported that during the initial climb, about 150 feet above the ground, while the landing gear was being retracted, the airplane impacted a flock of medium sized birds. He noted that the landing gear unlock indicator remained illuminated and the landing gear handle would not return to the up neutral position. No degradation of performance was noted, so the pilot choose to continue to his destination.
About 20 miles from the airport, the pilot attempted to lower the landing gear, but was unsuccessful. He contacted maintenance personnel on the ground and advised them of the landing gear issue. The ground maintenance personnel visually verified that the nose and right main landing gear were down. The pilot performed the emergency gear extension checklist and noted little to no resistance on the hand pump. After multiple attempts to lower the landing gear, Airport Rescue and Fire Fighting Support was requested. Soon after, the pilot received clearance to land.
During the landing the right main landing gear collapsed and the left wing impacted the ground.
The airplane sustained substantial damage to the fuselage.
A postaccident examination revealed snarge on both horizonal stabilizers, left wing, and fuselage. It was noted that the right inboard main landing gear door actuator hose had failed.
Data Source
Data provided by the National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB). For more information on this event, visit the NTSB Records Search website. NTSB# GAA17CA570