Piper PA-23-250 Aztec, G-BKJW, 28 September 2012
Piper PA-23-250 Aztec, G-BKJW
Summary:
The pilot was conducting a normal landing on Runway 24 at Southend Airport following a local flight. The weather was fine, with a surface wind from 240° at 17 kt. The landing gear was selected down and three green ‘down’ indicator lights obtained, together with visual confirmation that the nose gear was extended. The landing was normal until near the end of the landing roll when wheel braking was applied. The gear warning horn sounded and, two or three seconds afterwards as the aircraft was travelling at about 15 kt, the nose landing gear gently moved towards the retracted position. The aircraft’s nose lowered to the ground and both propellers contacted the runway. The aircraft came to a stop within about 20 m and the pilot secured the aircraft. The five occupants were uninjured; they vacated the aircraft through the cabin door as the airfield emergency services arrived.
The aircraft was checked by a local maintenance and repair organisation, which found no faults with the undercarriage system. Several retraction/extension cycles were carried out, on each occasion achieving positive downlock and green indicator lights for all three undercarriage legs. The cause of the accident was thus unresolved.
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