Piper PA 44-180 accident near Gaithersburg, Maryland, June 9, 2017
On June 9, 2017 at about 1:10 am local time, a 1979 Piper PA 44-180, registered N3020M, was substantially damaged in an accident during landing (landing roll) near Gaithersburg, Maryland (Montgomery County Airpark airport). It was an instructional flight under general aviation rules (Part 91). No one was hurt; 4 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 right main landing gear trunnion bracket due to an undetermined overstress event.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made October 5, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- June 9, 2017 · about 1:10 am local time
- Place
- Gaithersburg, Maryland · Montgomery County Airpark · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- No one was hurt; 4 people were on board or involved.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Piper PA 44-180 180, built 1979 · all PA 44-180s on the register
- Registration
- N3020M · registry record · serial 44-7995220
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Instructional flight · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
According to the flight instructor, after an uneventful training flight, the airplane was returning to home base. After touchdown and during the landing roll, the airplane veered to the right of the centerline and stopped. The instructor exited the airplane and discovered that the right main landing gear had collapsed. Postaccident examination of the landing gear revealed that the right aft main landing gear trunnion bracket had failed and that the wing spar web was damaged. A visual examination of the fracture surfaces revealed that the landing gear trunnion bracket failed during an overstress event. A review of the logbooks did not reveal any recent maintenance to the gear assembly. The investigation could not determine when the overstress event occurred that resulted in the failure of right main landing gear trunnion bracket.
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
What happened, in order
- Landing gear collapse during landing (landing roll) defining event
The NTSB's findings
- cause Aircraft › Aircraft systems › Landing gear system › Main landing gear attach sec › Failure
Pilot
- Certificate: flight instructor, commercial pilot
- Ratings: multi-engine land; single-engine land; instructor: airplane multi-engine; instructor: airplane single-engine; instrument: airplane
- Flight time: 1,281 hours in all; 1,281 in this make and model; 282 in the last 90 days; 110 in the last 30 days; 1,227 as pilot in command; 843 on instruments
- Last flight review: March 3, 2017
- Medical certificate: Class 3 (without waivers/limitations)
- Seat: rgt
- Injury: no injuries
Dual student
- Certificate: student
- Ratings: single-engine land
- Flight time: 600 hours in all; 120 in the last 90 days; 94 in the last 30 days; 490 as pilot in command
- Medical certificate: Class 1 (without waivers/limitations)
- Seat: left
- Injury: no injuries
Passenger
- Seat: rear
- Injury: no injuries
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 9,467 hours
- Last inspection: annual inspection, March 16, 2017; 668 hours since
- Maximum gross weight: 3,801 lb
- Seats: 4
- Landing gear: retractable
- Engine 1: Lycoming LO-360-E1A6D (piston); 2,074 hours total
- Engine 2: Lycoming LO-360-E1A6D (piston); 2,074 hours total
The flight
- Departed from: DMW Westminster MD
- Destination: GAI Gaithersburg MD
- Flight plan: none
- Runway 14, 4,202 ft by 75 ft
- A second pilot was aboard
Weather at the time
- Light: night
- Wind: from 310° at 4 knots
- Visibility: 10 statute miles
- Sky: not recorded at 10,000 ft; a few clouds at 8,000 ft
- Temperature: 72°F (22°C), dew point 59°F (15°C)
- Altimeter: 29.94 inHg
- Observation at 1:52 am from IAD
Injuries
| Fatal | Serious | Minor | None | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Flight crew | 3 | |||
| Passengers | 1 |
Documents from the investigation the NTSB's docket: the evidence folder behind the report
5 documents, released by the NTSB on November 25, 2019. View them here, or download them; the NTSB redacts some personal details before release, and this site shows the NTSB's own titles rather than its file names.
| # | Document | What it is | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Pilot/operator Aircraft Accident Report, NTSB Form 6120.1 | PDF, 11 pages | View Download |
| 2 | Memorandum of Record - FAA Statement | PDF, 1 page | View Download |
| 3 | Maintenance Logbook | PDF, 4 pages | View Download |
| 4 | Photos | PDF, 3 pages | View Download |
| 5 | Memorandum for Record - Summary of Email Correspondence with NTSB Materials Laboratory | PDF, 1 page | View Download |
The same docket at the NTSB · documents without a copy here are fetched from the NTSB when you open them.
Other NTSB records under N3020M the same tail number, which may have belonged to a different aircraft at the time
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.