Accidents Database

Back to Search

Beechcraft BE58 Baron, G-BTFT, 2 September 2013

Air Accidents (AAIB)

Published on 10 December 2014, 22:59

Summary
aircraft category
commercial-fixed-wing
aircraft type
Beechcraft BE58 Baron
bulk published
1
date of occurrence
2013-09-02
location
Compton Abbas Airfield, Dorset
registration
G-BTFT
report type
correspondence-investigation

Report Overview

Beechcraft BE58 Baron, G-BTFT

Summary:

The pilot was positioning the aircraft to Compton Abbas Airfield for maintenance. He reported that on final approach he selected the landing gear handle to the DOWN position and checked that the three green landing gear position indicator lights were illuminated. As he flared the aircraft, it sank onto the grass runway with the landing gear retracted. He was uninjured.

This overview has been truncated. Please refer to the official documents below for the complete canonical report.

Official Documents

  • Beechcraft BE58 Baron, G-BTFT 12-13.pdf
    Download

Document Content Preview

Extracted text from the first few pages of the official documents.

Beechcraft BE58 Baron, G-BTFT 12-13.pdf

21� Crown copyright 2013 AAIB Bulletin: 12/2013 G-BTFT EW/G2013/09/01 ACCIDENT Aircraft Type and Registration: Beechcraft BE58 Baron, G-BTFT No & Type of Engines: 2 Continental Motors Corp IO-520-CB piston engines Year of Manufacture: 1979 (Serial no: TH-979) Date & Time (UTC): 2 September 2013 at 0935 hrs Location: Compton Abbas Airfield, Dorset Type of Flight: Private Persons on Board: Crew - 1 Passengers - None Injuries: Crew - None Passengers - N/A Nature of Damage: Shock-loaded engines, propellers, flaps and landing gear doors Commander’s Licence: Commercial Pilot’s Licence Commander’s Age: 72 years Commander’s Flying Experience: 3,460 hours (of which 1,387 were on type) Last 90 days - 38 hours Last 28 days - 26 hours Information Source: Aircraft Accident Report Form submitted by the pilot Synopsis The pilot was positioning the aircraft to Compton Abbas Airfield for maintenance. He reported that on final approach he selected the landing gear handle to the DOWN position and checked that the three green landing gear position indicator lights were illuminated. As he flared the aircraft, it sank onto the grass runway with the landing gear retracted. He was uninjured. History of the flight The pilot was carrying out a positioning flight from Thruxton Aerodrome to Compton Abbas Airfield for scheduled maintenance. The weather was good, with visibility in excess of 10 km in bright sunshine, scattered cloud at 2,500 ft and a north-westerly wind of 10 to 15 kt. The aircraft was established on a straight in approach to grass Runway 26. At a range of about 4 nm and a height of 1,500 ft AAL, the pilot selected the first stage of flap, then the landing gear handle to the DOWN position. He confirmed that the three green landing gear position indicator lights were illuminated and completed his pre-landing checklist. When established on his final descent, the pilot lowered full flap. There was some light turbulence, which increased as the aircraft neared the airfield, and he adjusted the aircraft’s flight path in order to touch down at the threshold of the runway. He flared the aircraft and noticed that it was sinking lower than normal. Realising 22� Crown copyright 2013 AAIB Bulletin: 12/2013 G-BTFT EW/G2013/09/01 that the aircraft would contact the ground before he could initiate a go-around, he closed the throttles fully. The aircraft touched down and came to a stop with the landing gear retracted. He was uninjured. The aircraft was recovered by an engineering organisation and lifted by crane. The landing gear motor circuit breaker was found closed and the landing gear selector handle was in the DOWN position. The inboard landing gear doors had opened and been sheared off, indicating that the lowering of the landing gear had commenced before the landing. The landing gear was lowered without difficulty using the mechanical landing gear release mechanism. The pilot reported that he did not hear the landing gear warning horn, which was set to activate at between 1,200 and 1,500 rpm. At the time of the report, repairs to the aircraft were ongoing. The pilot considered that, when he checked the three green landing gear position indicator lights, they had not been illuminated but appeared to be due to the bright sunlight.

Change History

  • First published.

Related Entities

Search the database for other reports involving these entities.

G-BTFT Beechcraft BE58 Baron Compton Abbas Airfield, Dorset