Beech 95B55 N62RF accident near Islip, New York

Probable cause

The pilot's failure to lower the landing gear before touchdown, which resulted in the gear-up landing.

NTSB analysis

The pilot was planning to perform practice night landings at the airport, and after initially departing, was returning to the airport after conducting some practice instrument maneuvers. He stated that once he was on final approach to the runway, he prepared for landing using his “written checklist" and that “[e]verything with the approach and completed checklist appeared normal." He then did a check of the gas, undercarriage, mixture, props, and flaps several times. He stated that the airplane touched down normally on the runway, then dropped and skidded to a stop.

Following the accident, the airplane was observed on its belly on the runway; the landing gear were not extended. Examination of the airplane revealed substantial damage to the forward wing spar. No evidence of damage was noted to the landing gear system linkages and retraction rods, which would have been evident if all three landing gear had collapsed. Operational checks of the landing gear system revealed that the landing gear system was functional.

During a follow-up interview, the pilot stated that he landed right on the runway centerline but that “[u]nfortunately, the gear was not under the airplane” and that it was “[m]y fault.” Given this information, the pilot’s failure to lower the landing gear before touchdown resulted in the gear-up landing.

Text from the NTSB. Open the NTSB docket for ERA17LA134 for the full record.