Probable cause
The failure of the student pilot to complete the before landing checklist. Contributing to the accident was his failure to lower the landing gear before landing.
NTSB analysis
The student pilot was landing at the non-towered airport after a cross country flight, when he made a "short approach", did not use any flaps, and kept an approach speed that was about 30 knots faster than normal. The student pilot said he didn't use his normal checklist procedure and that everything seemed to be going "too fast" when the airplane landed on the asphalt runway with the landing gear retracted and the skin on the belly of the fuselage was ground down to the main keel. There was no injury to the solo student pilot, but substantial damage to the fuselage structure.
Text from the NTSB. Open the NTSB docket for CEN09CA223 for the full record.
Event
- Date
- Mar 16, 2009
- Type
- Accident
- Place
- Taos, New Mexico
- Nearest airport
- Taos Regional Airport (KSKX)
- Highest injury
- None
- Weather
- Visual (VMC)
- Light
- Day
Beech D35
- N-number
- N342R
- Category
- Airplane
- Damage
- Substantial
- Operating rule
- Part 91 (general aviation)
- Purpose of flight
- Personal
From the NTSB aviation accident database: N-registered aircraft, events since 2008, data through Oct 28, 2026. The file is published monthly, so the latest weeks are incomplete and recent records can change. The official source is the NTSB aviation investigation search. CheckAero is independent and not affiliated with the NTSB.