N7059P

On January 16, 2024, about 1815 central standard time, a Piper PA24, N7059P, sustained substantial damage when it was involved in an accident near Hugo, Oklahoma. The pilot was not injured. The airplane was operated as a Title 14 Code of Federal Regulations (CFR) Part 91 personal flight.

The pilot reported that after takeoff he retracted the landing gear but did not receive an “up” indication. He then lowered the landing gear and noted a “down” indication but did not receive an up indication upon subsequent retraction of the landing gear a second time. The pilot continued the flight and noted that he had to hold right aileron and right rudder during cruise flight in order to maintain coordinated flight.

When the airplane approached its destination, the pilot attempted to lower the landing gear and the circuit breaker tripped and the landing gear motor stopped. He attempted several times to reset the circuit breaker and cycle the landing gear, but the breaker continued to trip and he did not receive either gear up or down indications. The pilot performed a fly-by of the airport and ground observers signaled him that the landing gear was not extended. He attempted the emergency landing gear extension procedure, but the lever would not move. The pilot ultimately decided to land with the landing gear retracted and he performed fly-bys to evaluate the terrain adjacent to the runway for the landing. Once he had determined the location where he would perform the landing, he conducted pre-landing checks which included selecting the fullest fuel tank based on the fuel gauge readings.

While maneuvering the airplane to land, the airplane’s engine stopped producing power and the pilot executed a forced landing to a field. The airplane struck small trees during the landing and then impacted the ground. The airplane sustained substantial damage to the fuselage and left wing. The pilot noted that while attempting to diagnose the landing gear issues he circled the airport for about 40 minutes. A few days after the accident he had an opportunity to “dip” the fuel tanks and noted the one that had indicated more fuel was empty whereas the one that had indicated less fuel had about 5 gallons of fuel remaining.