Cessna TR182 accident near Chatham, Massachusetts, February 19, 2023
On February 19, 2023 at about 3:15 pm local time, a 1979 Cessna TR182, registered N711PD, was substantially damaged in an accident during landing (flare/touchdown) near Chatham, Massachusetts (Chatham Muni airport). It was a personal flight under general aviation rules (Part 91). No one was hurt; 2 people were on board or involved. The weather was visual conditions (good weather).
The NTSB's probable cause their words, unchanged
The pilot’s failure to lower the landing gear before touchdown.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made November 2, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- February 19, 2023 · about 3:15 pm local time · cases in 2023
- Place
- Chatham, Massachusetts · Chatham Muni · cases near this airport · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- No one was hurt; 2 people were on board or involved.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Cessna TR182, built 1979 · all TR182s on the register
- Registration
- N711PD · registry record · serial R18201282
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Personal flight · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
At the conclusion of an uneventful flight, the pilot entered the airport traffic pattern for landing. The pilot reported that while on the downwind leg of the traffic pattern for landing, he failed to extend the landing gear and landed with the landing gear retracted. The airplane subsequently touched down on the runway and sustained substantial damage to the underside of the fuselage. The pilot reported that there were no preaccident machinal malfunctions or failure with the airplane that would have precluded normal operation.
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 not configured during landing (flare/touchdown) defining event
The NTSB's findings
- Personnel issues › Action/decision › Action › Forgotten action/omission › Pilot
- Personnel issues › Task performance › Use of equip/info › Use of equip/system › Pilot
- Aircraft › Aircraft systems › Landing gear system › Gear extension and retract sys › Not used/operated other cases naming the landing gear
Pilot
- Certificate: flight instructor, commercial pilot
- Ratings: multi-engine land; single-engine land; instructor: airplane single-engine; instructor: instrument airplane; instrument: airplane
- Flight time: 5,285 hours in all; 2,571 in this make and model; 5,130 as pilot in command; 636 on instruments
- Last flight review: September 10, 2022
- Medical certificate: Class 2 (with waivers/limitations)
- Seat: left
- Injury: no injuries
Passenger
- Seat: left
- Injury: no injuries
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 3,463 hours
- Last inspection: condition inspection, March 11, 2022
- Maximum gross weight: 3,100 lb
- Seats: 4
- Landing gear: retractable
- Engine: Lycoming O-540-L3C5D (piston); 1,524 hours total
The flight
- Departed from: 5B6 East Falmouth MA at 2:45 pm
- Destination: CQX Chatham MA
- Flight plan: none
- Runway 24, 3,001 ft by 100 ft
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Visibility: 10 statute miles
- Sky: clear
- Temperature: 46°F (8°C), dew point 30°F (-1°C)
- Altimeter: 30.39 inHg
- Observation at 10:52 am from CQX
Weather report (METAR): KCQX 191552Z AUTO VRB05KT 10SM CLR 08/M01 A3039 RMK AO2 SLP291 T00781011
Injuries
| Fatal | Serious | Minor | None | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Flight crew | 1 | |||
| Passengers | 1 |
Photographs from the investigation 2 pictures from the NTSB's docket, as the NTSB released them
Photo 1 – View of Airplane from Right, Post-Accident on Runway
Photo 2 – View of Structural Damage to Underside of FuselageThe NTSB's photographs with the NTSB's captions, at screen size. Open a picture to see it full size or to report one that should not be shown.
Documents from the investigation the NTSB's docket: the evidence folder behind the report
2 documents, released by the NTSB on June 15, 2023. 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 | Investigative Photographs | PDF, 3 pages · our copy | View Download |
The same docket at the NTSB · documents without a copy here are fetched from the NTSB when you open them.
Connections how this case links to the rest of the register
- N711PD on the register today · the tail number may have moved to another aircraft since
- Cessna TR182 Turbo Skylane RG 465 registered today · the model family and its accident history
- Cessna 72,677 aircraft on the register
- Engine: Lycoming O-540-L3C5D 18 aircraft carry this series today · as the NTSB recorded it
- Chatham Municipal · nearest airport
- Falmouth Airpark · departed from
- Accidents and incidents in Massachusetts 987 since 1982 · 90 in the last ten years
- Massachusetts 2,646 aircraft registered
The whole map of how records connect · these connections as data: /graph/accident/ERA23LA129.json.
The bigger picture in Aviation Analytics: accidents over time since 1982, by model, by phase of flight and conditions, by place and on the map.
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 does not name anyone involved, its policy at this time. A preliminary report can change; the final report usually follows one to two years later, and the page is refreshed when it does.