Cessna TR182 N738JZ accident near Santa Barbara, California

Probable cause

A failure of the right main landing gear actuator pressure line O-ring, which resulted in a gear-up landing on the runway.

NTSB analysis

According to the pilot, the landing gear did not extend while on approach to a tower-controlled airport. The pilot attempted to manually extended the landing gear and made a low pass over the airport. The tower controllers described that the nose gear was down, and the main landing gear was not fully extended. The pilot declared an emergency and landed on the runway with the landing gear partially retracted.

Postaccident examination of the landing gear hydraulic system revealed a leak traced to the right main landing gear actuator O-ring pressure line. The actuator pressure-side O-ring was replaced, the actuator was reinstalled, and the hydraulic system maintained hydraulic pressure with no additional anomalies. According to the airframe and powerplant mechanic, the actuator O-ring showed signs of deterioration. Evidence supports that the deteriorated actuator O-ring resulted in a failure of the landing gear hydraulic system, specifically, the right main landing gear.

Text from the NTSB. Open the NTSB docket for WPR22LA226 for the full record.