NTSB CAROL · Event
Event ATL00LA050
Registry · N56LW
FAA Aircraft Registry record.
Make / Model
CESSNA 501
Year of manufacture
1981 · 19 years old at event
Engine
P&W CANADA JT15D-1A
Seats / Engines
8 seats · 2 engines
Last airworthiness date
19821103
ADS-B equipped
Yes — Mode-S A725A0
Registrant of record
GULF ATLANTIC AIRWAYS INC
Source: FAA Aircraft Registry (releasable master file).
Aircraft involved
Probable cause & findings
The pilot's failure to follow the landing checklist that resulted in the delay of lowering the landing gear before touchdown.
Factual narrative
On May 2, 2000, at 1913 eastern daylight time, a Cessna 501, Citation, N56LW, landed with the right main landing gear partially extended on runway 18 at the Orlando International Airport, in Orlando, Florida. The personal flight was operated by the pilot under the provisions of Title 14 CFR Part 91 with no flight plan filed. Visual weather conditions prevailed at the time of the accident. The airplane sustained substantial damage. The private pilot and his passenger were not injured. The flight departed Leesburg, Florida, at 1850. According to the pilot, while enroute to land he silenced the landing gear warning horn and forgot to lower the landing gear. Just prior to the touchdown, the pilot attempted to lower the landing gear. The airplane touched down with the landing gear in transit, and the right landing gear collapsed. The airplane skidded approximately 2500 feet on the runway surface before coming to a complete stop on the runway. The right wing assembly received structural damage, and leaked jet fuel from the bottom side of the right wing assembly. The examination and the functional check of the airplane failed to disclose a mechanical problem with the landing gear extension and retraction system. The pilot also did not report a mechanical problem with the airplane. Reportedly, the pilot stated that he forgot to lower the landing gear, as instructed in the normal pre-landing checklist. While en route to land, the pilot silenced the landing gear warning horn. Just prior to touch down, the pilot attempted to lower the landing gear. The airplane touched down with the landing gear in transit, and the right landing gear collapsed. The examination and the functional check of the airplane failed to disclose a mechanical problem with the landing gear extension and retraction system. The pilot also did not report a mechanical problem with the airplane. The pilot stated that he forgot to lower the landing gear, as stated in the normal pre-landing checklist. Source: NTSB Aviation Accident Database (Pre-2008 Archive) Retrieved: 2026-02-12
Verbatim from NTSB's published report. Source file
NTSB_2000_ATL00LA050.txt.
Findings + structured fields enriched from FAA avall.mdb.
Full investigation docket on
data.ntsb.gov ↗.
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Related research
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Academic papers and agency reports matching this event's aircraft type. Sourced from NASA NTRS, NTSB Safety Studies, FAA CAMI, AOPA Air Safety Institute, Embry-Riddle Scholarly Commons, arXiv, and the Semantic Scholar academic graph.
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