Piper PA-31T N2338V

Summary

On 4 May 2005 at about 02:00 local time, a Piper PA-31T registered N2338V was involved in an accident near Bismarck, North Dakota, United States. 2 people were on board and nobody was injured. The aircraft was substantially damaged. The NTSB has published a probable cause for this accident; it is quoted in full below.

Date

4 May 2005 at 02:00

Classification

Accident

Location

Bismarck, North Dakota, United States

Nearest airport

Bismarck Muni (BIS)

Coordinates

46.7728, -100.7458

Aircraft

Piper PA-31T

Registration

N2338V

Category

Airplane

Engines

2

Operator

Not recorded

Operating rule

Part 91: General Aviation

Purpose of flight

Unknown

Phase of flight

Not recorded

Route

Denver → Bismark

Aircraft damage

Substantial

Weather

VMC

Light

Day

NTSB number

CHI05LA109

Nobody was injured.

Rupture of the hydraulic powerpak drain line which resulted in a loss of hydraulic fluid and the inability to properly lower the landing gear despite the pilot's execution of the emergency extension procedures. A contributing factor was the runway light struck during the emergency landing.

Quoted verbatim from the NTSB record. This site does not paraphrase or interpret it.

Read the full NTSB narrative

The airplane was substantially damaged during an emergency landing when the landing gear did not extend properly. The pilot noted that when he attempted to lower the landing gear on approach to the intended destination nothing happened. He elected to divert to an airport with additional capabilities and assistance available. The pilot stated that he executed the emergency gear extension procedure, however, this procedure was not successful. The left main landing gear appeared to be fully extended, the nose landing gear was in a "dragging" condition, and the right main landing gear was retracted when observed by the tower controller prior to landing. The pilot noted that the red gear unlocked indicator light was illuminated and the green landing gear down/locked indicators were not illuminated. Since no further options were available to extend the gear, the pilot executed an emergency landing. The airplane touched down on the left main wheel which did not collapse initially. The right wing subsequently dropped and contacted the runway. The pilot applied left wheel brakes, however, the airplane departed the right side of the runway pavement and came to rest in the grass. The left main landing gear collapsed and a runway light was damaged in the process. The post-accident inspection revealed that a hydraulic powerpak drain line (Piper part number 46138-00) was ruptured. The drain line was located in the nose section of the airplane, forward of the cabin pressure bulkhead. The rupture was approximately one-half inch long. Hydraulic fluid was observed in the vicinity of the line rupture. The hydraulic reservoir was empty.

Quoted verbatim from the NTSB record.