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Atlas / NTSB / CEN23LA115

NTSB CAROL · Event

Event CEN23LA115

2023-02-15 Cahokia, Illinois, United States Airport · KCPS None 1 aircraft Status: Completed

Registry · N7681F

FAA Aircraft Registry record.

Make / Model

PIPER PA-34-200T

Year of manufacture

1976 · 47 years old at event

Engine

CONT MOTOR TSIO-360 SER (225 hp)

Seats / Engines

7 seats · 2 engines

Last airworthiness date

19761123

ADS-B equipped

Yes — Mode-S AA61C1

Registrant of record

LOWRANCE KENNETH D

Source: FAA Aircraft Registry (releasable master file).

Aircraft involved

Probable cause & findings

The pilot’s failure to extent the landing gear before landing.

Factual narrative

The pilot reported that he was performing touch and go landings. On the fourth traffic pattern, the controller requested that he turn inside of the airplane that was on final approach. The pilot stated that he delayed extending the landing gear until he turned the airplane onto the final approach leg. After he reduced the airspeed, he selected flaps and extended the landing gear. During the landing, the pilot “heard the sound of metal” and realized that the landing gear was not extended. The pilot reported that when he moved the landing gear handle, he did not see the unsafe landing gear warning light, nor was there a landing gear warning horn. The airplane sustained damage to the lower fuselage. The mechanic that recovered the airplane after the accident reported that the landing gear extended normally, and the landing gear warning horn was audible. Further, the pilot reported to the responding inspector that he had just forgot to extend the landing gear. 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-Gear extension and retract sys-Not used/operated
  • Personnel issues-Action/decision-Action-Forgotten action/omission-Pilot

Verbatim from NTSB's published report. Source file NTSB_2023_CEN23LA115.txt. Findings + structured fields enriched from FAA avall.mdb. Full investigation docket on data.ntsb.gov ↗.