Aero Commander GA-500-B accident near Kansas City, Missouri, November 15, 2007
On November 15, 2007, a Aero Commander GA-500-B, registered N444CB, was substantially damaged in an accident near Kansas City, Missouri (Downtown Airport). It was flown under charter and air-taxi rules (Part 135). No one was hurt; 1 person was on board or involved. The weather was visual conditions (good weather).
The NTSB's probable cause their words, unchanged
The pilot delayed lowering the landing gear in the landing sequence and the main gear were not in the down and locked position upon touchdown.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made October 5, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- November 15, 2007
- Place
- Kansas City, Missouri · Downtown Airport · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- No one was hurt; 1 person was on board or involved.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Aero Commander GA-500-B
- Registration
- N444CB · registry record · serial 500B-1119-69
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Flight · charter and air-taxi rules (Part 135)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
The pilot reported that he performed the landing checklist while he was on a visual approach following jet traffic to the runway. He lowered the landing gear and flaps, and confirmed that the three green lights illuminated. He reported that the flare and landing were normal, and when the nose gear touched the runway he applied brake pressure. He reported that the "main landing gear collapsed and I could no longer maintain centerline of the runway." The airplane skidded on its belly for about 270 feet. The inspection of the airplane revealed that the left and right main landing gear were folded back with the wheels canted sideways and resting on the runway. The nose gear was in the down position. The landing gear handle was found in the down and locked position. When the master switch was turned on, the nose gear down lock light was on, and the left and right main gear lock lights were not on. The airplane was raised up using a forklift and aircraft jacks. When the main landing gear were free of the runway, both main landing gear locked in place in the down position. When the airplane was lowered onto its main landing gear, the two main landing gear lights illuminated. The propellers had not struck the runway during the accident, so the engines were started and the airplane was taxied back to the operator's hangar. The inspection of the main landing gear revealed that there was no evidence that the airplane's main landing gear lock down mechanism had failed on either the left or right main landing gear.
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: commercial pilot
- Ratings: multi-engine land; single-engine land; instrument: airplane
- Flight time: 1,503 hours in all; 219 in this make and model; 219 in the last 90 days; 23 in the last 30 days; 1,222 as pilot in command
- Last flight review: December 1, 2007
- Medical certificate: Class 1 (with waivers/limitations)
- Seat: left
- Injury: no injuries
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 2,928 hours
- Last inspection: continuous airworthiness programme, October 1, 2007; 67 hours since
- Maximum gross weight: 6,750 lb
- Seats: 2
- Landing gear: retractable
- Engine: Lycoming TIO-540 (piston); 0 hours total
The flight
- Departed from: CPS Cahokia MO at 10:30 pm
- Destination: MKC Kansas City MO
- Flight plan: IFR
- Runway 01, 7,002 ft by 150 ft
Weather at the time
- Light: night
- Wind: from 320° at 8 knots
- Visibility: 10 statute miles
- Sky: clear
- Temperature: 52°F (11°C), dew point 16°F (-9°C)
- Altimeter: 30.14 inHg
- Observation at 10:15 pm from MKC
Injuries
| Fatal | Serious | Minor | None | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Crew | 1 |
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.