Piper PA-24-260B accident near Belleville, Illinois, December 28, 2006
On December 28, 2006 at about 10:12 pm local time, a Piper PA-24-260B, registered N9284P, was substantially damaged in an accident near Belleville, Illinois (Scott Afb/Mid America Airport). It was a personal flight under general aviation rules (Part 91). No one was hurt; 3 people were on board or involved. The weather was visual conditions (good weather).
The NTSB's probable cause their words, unchanged
The failure of the torque link bolt which resulted in the right main landing gear strut scissors separating and becoming jammed in the wheel well. Contributing to the accident was the seized torque link bolt due to surface corrosion.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made October 5, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- December 28, 2006 · about 10:12 pm local time
- Place
- Belleville, Illinois · Scott Afb/Mid America Airport · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- No one was hurt; 3 people were on board or involved.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Piper PA-24-260B · all PA-24-260Bs on the register
- Registration
- N9284P · registry record · serial 24-4784
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Personal flight · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
The pilot reported that after takeoff he selected landing gear-up, but the corresponding position light did not illuminate. He checked the landing gear motor circuit breaker and found it tripped. The pilot was unable to get the landing gear to fully extend or retract during subsequent attempts. The destination airport control tower verified that the landing gear was not fully extended during a fly-by after the pilot had attempted an emergency landing gear extension. The pilot decided to retract the landing gear as much as possible and perform a wheels-up landing in a grass area adjacent to a runway. The airplane sustained substantial damage to a fuselage bulkhead during landing. Inspection of the airplane showed that the right main landing gear was partially extended with its wheel and lower strut assembly rotated in the wheelwell. The bolt that attached the upper and lower portions of the torque link assembly was sheared in half. The lower torque link was jammed against the wheelwell structure, which restricted the movement of the entire landing gear assembly. The bolt fracture features were consistent with shear overstress, as a result of torsion during the action of the torque link assembly. The bolt fracture face did not contain any evidence of fatigue cracking. The separated bolt sections were seized within the upper and lower torque links, as a result of surface corrosion.
The complete narrative as the NTSB published it. The NTSB's docket holds the report as a PDF and any photographs, statements and other documents from the investigation.
The factual record from the NTSB's investigation tables, in plain English
Pilot
- Certificate: flight instructor, commercial pilot
- Ratings: multi-engine land; multi-engine sea; single-engine land; single-engine sea; instructor: airplane multi-engine; instructor: airplane single-engine; instructor: glider; instructor: gyroplane; instructor: instrument airplane; instrument: airplane; rotorcraft: balloon; rotorcraft: glider; rotorcraft: gyroplane
- Flight time: 2,128 hours in all; 543 in this make and model; 14 in the last 90 days; 8 in the last 30 days; 1,856 as pilot in command; 326 on instruments
- Last flight review: October 1, 2005
- Medical certificate: Class 3 (without waivers/limitations)
- Seat: left
- Injury: no injuries
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 5,228 hours
- Last inspection: annual inspection, August 1, 2006
- Maximum gross weight: 3,100 lb
- Seats: 4
- Landing gear: retractable
- Engine: Lycoming IO-540-C4D5D (piston); 0 hours total
The flight
- Departed from: 2K0 Monticello IL at 9:07 pm
- Destination: BLV Belleville IL
- Flight plan: none
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Wind: from 180° at 11 knots
- Visibility: 7 statute miles
- Sky: scat at 25,000 ft
- Temperature: 46°F (8°C), dew point 34°F (1°C)
- Altimeter: 30.14 inHg
- Observation at 9:55 pm from BLV
Injuries
| Fatal | Serious | Minor | None | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Crew | 1 | |||
| Passengers | 2 |
Documents from the investigation the NTSB's docket: the evidence folder behind the report
The docket, the folder of records gathered during an investigation (maintenance records, photographs, witness statements, examinations), has not been read from the NTSB for this case yet; the list appears here once it has. Open the docket at the NTSB.
Everything on this page comes from the NTSB's public records. The narrative, probable cause and findings are the NTSB's own words; the coded tables behind the report are written out in plain English, with pilots' ages, home towns and medical details left out. The documents and photographs are the NTSB's docket, shown as the NTSB released them. This site's own text never names anyone involved. A preliminary report can change; the final report usually follows one to two years later, and the page is refreshed when it does.