N8458Y

On August 8, 2024, at about 1959 Pacific daylight time, a Piper PA-30 airplane, N8458Y, was substantially damaged when it was involved in an accident near Buchanan Field Airport (CCR), Concord, California. The pilot was not injured. The airplane was operated as a Title 14 Code of Federal Regulations Part 91 personal flight.

The pilot reported that the tower controller at CCR told him to report a “2 mile right base for runway 32R.” He notified the tower that he was on a “3 mile right base” and then extended the landing gear. After receiving clearance to land from the tower controller, he made the turn for final approach and completed a GUMPS check, at which time he noted that the landing gear switch was in the down position while the corresponding annunciator showed the gear in the up position. The pilot attempted to recycle the landing gear, but the landing gear annunciator light still indicated the gear was up and locked.

The tower controller approved a go-around; however, the pilot’s next attempt to recycle the gear was unsuccessful. He then overflew the runway (a fly-by) and the tower confirmed that the landing gear was partially down and did not appear to be locked. The pilot briefly checked the circuit breakers with his hand and noted that none had popped.

During this time, he continued to circle the field above traffic pattern altitude while he recycled the gear multiple times and tried to shake the gear loose by turning abruptly. After these unsuccessful attempts, a mechanic and the owner of the airplane were allowed to enter the tower to help troubleshoot the failure. At their suggestion, the pilot raised the jackscrew lock to manually release the landing gear, but was unsuccessful. After attempting several additional maneuvers (rolling, climbing, diving) to lower the landing gear, the tower controller noted that the sun was going down and asked if he wanted to continue. The pilot decided that he should land as he was mentally and physically worn out by his effort. The tower controller cleared the pilot to land on runway 19R and after one more low pass, the pilot landed the airplane on the partially extended landing gear. During touchdown, the gear collapsed and the airplane skidded to a stop, which resulted in substantial damage to the fuselage.

The wreckage has been retained for further examination.