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Atlas / NTSB / CEN22LA169

NTSB CAROL · Event

Event CEN22LA169

2022-04-03 Pearland, Texas, United States Airport · LVJ None 1 aircraft Status: Completed

Registry · N5338V

FAA Aircraft Registry record.

Make / Model

CESSNA 172RG

Year of manufacture

1980 · 42 years old at event

Engine

LYCOMING O&VO-360 SER (180 hp)

Seats / Engines

4 seats · 1 engine

Last airworthiness date

19800520

ADS-B equipped

Yes — Mode-S A6BF16

Registrant of record

MASSIE PATRICK J

Source: FAA Aircraft Registry (releasable master file).

Aircraft involved

Probable cause & findings

The flight instructor's failure to extend the landing gear and perform a before landing checklist.

Factual narrative

The flight instructor reported that he and pilot receiving instruction had performed eight takeoffs and landings without incident. The flight instructor’s procedure was to perform the checklist items and select landing gear down when established on downwind in the traffic pattern. During the final traffic pattern, they became distracted and did not perform the checklist. The pilot receiving instruction reported that they did not lower the landing gear during the final approach and the airplane landed wheels up. The airplane sustained damage to the lower fuselage structure during the landing. Video footage provided by the airport manager showed the airplane’s landing gear fully retracted during the approach. Neither pilot recalled hearing the landing gear warning horn prior to the gear up landing. The mechanic that recovered and examined the airplane after the accident reported that the landing gear extended normally, and the landing gear warning horn was audible. Source: NTSB Aviation Accident Database Retrieved: 2026-02-12

NTSB Findings

Hierarchical cause / factor breakdown from the FAA bulk avdata database. Each finding tagged C (Cause) or F (Factor).

  • Aircraft-Aircraft systems-Landing gear system-(general)-Not used/operated
  • Personnel issues-Task performance-Use of equip/info-Use of checklist-Instructor/check pilot
  • Personnel issues-Action/decision-Action-Forgotten action/omission-Instructor/check pilot

Verbatim from NTSB's published report. Source file NTSB_2022_CEN22LA169.txt. Findings + structured fields enriched from FAA avall.mdb. Full investigation docket on data.ntsb.gov ↗.