Piper PA-44-180 N580ND accident near Grand Forks, North Dakota

Probable cause

The pilot receiving instruction's failure to extend the landing gear and the flight instructor's failure to adequately monitor his student's actions during the approach.

NTSB analysis

The pilot receiving instruction reported that during the downwind leg, after the flight instructor had simulated a single-engine failure of the twin-engine airplane, he began to fall behind on completing required checklist items, and, as result, he inadvertently forgot to extend the landing gear. He recalled hearing the landing gear warning horn while on the crosswind leg but reportedly was too distracted with flying the airplane to extend the landing gear at that point. He reported seeing sparks and hearing a grinding noise upon touchdown, at which time he also recalled hearing the landing gear warning horn. The flight instructor recalled that the airplane tail impacted the runway shortly after the pilot receiving instruction reduced engine power during the landing flare. The flight instructor noted that he heard the landing gear warning horn shortly after the airplane made contact with the runway. The airplane slid 200 to 300 feet on the lower fuselage before coming to a stop. A postaccident examination revealed that the landing gear selector handle was in the "UP" position. The landing gear extended normally into a down-and-locked position after the airplane was lifted off the ground and the landing gear selector handle was placed into the "DOWN" position. The operator reported that there were no mechanical anomalies that would have prevented the landing gear from extending normally.

Text from the NTSB. Open the NTSB docket for CEN12LA444 for the full record.