Piper PA 46-350P N1972M accident near West Chicago, Illinois

Probable cause

The failure of the nose gear actuator attachment to the engine mount due to overstress, which resulted in the loss of directional control during landing.

NTSB analysis

The commercial pilot was conducting a business flight and was preparing to land the airplane. He reported that, during the landing approach, he lowered the landing gear, which resulted in a gear down-and-locked indication. He subsequently made a smooth landing, but as soon as the nose gear touched down, the airplane "yanked severely to the left." He attempted to maintain directional control, but the airplane exited the left side of the runway into grass, the right wing contacted an airport sign, and the landing gear collapsed.

A postaccident examination revealed that the nose gear actuator attachment to the engine mount was fractured in two places. A metallurgical examination revealed that the fracture surfaces and deformation patterns were indicative of overstress separations at both locations. No preexisting cracking was noted. The investigation could not determine whether the overstress damage occurred during the accident landing or previous landings.

The airplane manufacturer had previously issued a service bulletin (SB), which recommended that an initial inspection of the engine mount for cracks in the area of the nose gear actuator attachment be accomplished at 740 hours time in service (TIS). However, the airplane only had 550 hours TIS at the time of the accident; therefore, it had not undergone the initial inspection recommended by the SB. Following the accident, the manufacturer reduced the initial inspection time to 200 hours TIS and redesigned the engine mount.

Text from the NTSB. Open the NTSB docket for CEN14LA196 for the full record.