Piper PA-34-220T N6915Z accident near Corpus Christi, Texas

Probable cause

The pilot's failure to extend the main landing gear prior to landing, which resulted in a gear up landing. Contributing to the accident was the pilot’s distraction during the approach.

NTSB analysis

The pilot was instructed to navigate to the runway by approach control. During the approach, the pilot was instructed to change runways. The pilot reported that he forgot to extend the main landing gear because he was distracted due to the request to transition to a different runway. The airplane landed in a gear-up configuration on the runway and sustained substantial damage to the fuselage keel beams. The pilot reported that there were no preaccident mechanical failures or malfunctions with the airplane that would have precluded normal operation. The pilot further reported that the accident sequence involved “distracting circumstances.”

Text from the NTSB. Open the NTSB docket for CEN26LA188 for the full record.