Piper PA-34-200T Seneca II, G-JDBC, 30 June 2008
Piper PA-34-200T Seneca II, G-JDBC
Summary:
During a training flight, three touch-and-go landings were conducted at Tatenhill Airfield. The next landing was to be a full stop. However, on touchdown the aircraft veered to the right; the instructor took control and flew the aircraft off the ground. When the landing gear was subsequently retracted an ‘unsafe’ indication was obtained and it was later observed that, with the gear extended, the left wheel appeared to be at 90? to the airflow, with the leg deflected in an aft direction. The decision was made to return to the operator’s base at Manchester, where, immediately prior to touchdown, both engines were shut down and the propellers feathered. Subsequent examination of the aircraft showed that the left landing gear forward trunnion fitting had broken into several pieces, thus releasing the leg from its location. Metallurgical examination indicated that the fitting had failed from a combination of loose attachment bolts and fretting damage.
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