Cessna 310J N3123L

Summary

On 10 October 2015 at about 18:00 local time, a Cessna 310J registered N3123L, operated by Leading Edge Aviation Inc, was involved in an accident near Tucson, Arizona, 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

10 October 2015 at 18:00

Classification

Accident

Location

Tucson, Arizona, United States

Nearest airport

Tucson Intl (TUS)

Coordinates

32.1094, -110.9378

Aircraft

Cessna 310J

Registration

N3123L

Category

Airplane

Year built

1965

Engines

2

Operator

Leading Edge Aviation Inc

Operating rule

Part 91: General Aviation

Purpose of flight

Personal

Phase of flight

Not recorded

Route

Tucson → Tucson

Aircraft damage

Substantial

Weather

VMC

Light

Day

NTSB number

WPR16LA015

Nobody was injured.

The insufficient right main landing gear (MLG) down-lock tension due to maintenance personnel's failure to perform a rigging procedure during the airplane's most recent inspection, which resulted in the right MLG collapsing during landing.

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

Read the full NTSB narrative

The commercial pilot and his passenger were returning to the airport after a 30-minute personal flight. The pilot reported that he configured the airplane for landing but that the landing gear down indication did not illuminate. The pilot cycled the landing gear several times, but the landing gear down indication still did not illuminate. After an air traffic controller confirmed that the landing gear was down, the pilot chose to initiate the landing. The airplane touched down uneventfully, but, about 3 seconds later, the right main landing gear (MLG) collapsed. The airplane subsequently veered right and departed the right side of the runway, which resulted in substantial damage to the right aileron and elevator. A postaccident examination of the landing gear system revealed that the right MLG down-lock tension was about 30 lbs less than the tension prescribed by the airplane's service manual. The fork bolt normally used to adjust the down-lock tension was covered in dirt and oil. Examination also revealed that the MLG nonadjustable drive tube had separated outboard a few inches from a clevis fitting. The signatures on the tube indicated that it failed in compression on the forward/aft plane. A review of maintenance records revealed that the airplane's last annual inspection occurred about 4 months before the accident. The condition of the fork bolt indicates that it had not been adjusted during this inspection. Further, the pilot reported that the rigging procedure in the service manual, which included an item to verify the landing gear down-lock brace tension, was not used during any recent inspections. Maintenance personnel's failure to perform the rigging procedure during the airplane's most recent annual inspection likely led to the insufficient down-lock tension and the drive tube's failure and the subsequent collapse of the right MLG due to the compression forces experienced upon touchdown.

Quoted verbatim from the NTSB record.