CHI98LA341

Factual narrative

On August 27, 1998, at 1840 eastern daylight time (edt), a Cessna 210D, N524BL, operated by a private pilot, was substantially damaged during a wheels up landing. Subsequent to the accident, while on approach for landing, the pilot noticed that his left main landing gear was not completely down. Following several attempts to lower the gear, the pilot raised the gear and landed the airplane on its belly. Visual meteorological conditions prevailed at the time of the accident. The personal flight was being conducted under 14 CFR Part 91. There was no flight plan on file. The pilot and passenger on board the airplane reported no injuries. The cross-country flight originated at Coldwater, Michigan, at 1800 edt. In his statement, the pilot said that he was taking his airplane to the Kirsch Municipal Airport, Sturgis, Michigan, to have it serviced. The pilot entered a left downwind for runway 6. Below 140 knots, the pilot lowered the gear, and put the flaps down. He looked at the landing gear mirror and saw that the left main gear did not look right. The gear position indicator lights were all green, indicating the gear was down and locked. The pilot aborted the approach and climbed out to the west of the airport. The pilot recycled the gear 4 to 5 times. He could get the left gear to swing, but could not get it all the way down into the locked position. The pilot executed a low approach over the field to have the gear configuration verified by people on the ground. He then slowed the airplane to 50 knots and at 3,000 feet mean sea level (msl), tried pitching the yoke forward to get the gear to lock. After an hour in the air, the pilot retracted the gear and belly-landed the airplane on runway 18. A Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) inspector examined the airplane at the Kirsch Municipal Airport. The airplane's bottom skin was scraped and wrinkled beginning at the cowling, and running aft to just beneath the rear cabin passenger seats. The forward landing gear doors were broken off. The lower engine cowling was crushed upward. The airplane's aft fuselage skin was bent inward and wrinkled on the lower left and right sides, aft of the baggage compartment. A large inward bend running perpendicular to the airplane's longitudinal axis was observed along the bottom of the aft fuselage approximately 24 inches aft of the main landing gear wells. The aft fuselage and empennage were bent downward beginning at the dorsal fin. The bottom forward windscreen frame was bent inward. The bottom of the forward windscreen was separated from the frame. The propeller showed minor torsional bending. Both propeller tips were bent aft approximately 25 degrees. Flight control continuity was confirmed. Examination of the left main landing gear revealed that the left main landing gear saddle was cracked through. No anomalies were revealed with the engine, engine controls or other airplane systems. Amendment 39-5124, dated August 28, 1985, to Airworthiness Directive (AD) 76-14-07 R2 CESSNA, regarding Cessna Models 210B - 210G, with 1,025 hours time in service, and each 25 hours subsequent, require inspection of main landing gear saddles, part numbers 1241423-1 and 1241423-2, for cracks using dye penetrant procedures outlined in paragraph E of the AD. Cracked saddles require replacement prior to further flight. The AD further states that within 100 hours time in service after August 16, 1976, or prior to April 1, 1977, whichever occurs later, landing gear saddles are to be replaced with improved saddles of the same part number, in accordance with Cessna Service Letter SE 75-26, dated December 5, 1975. The improved landing gear saddles are to be inspected for cracks at each annual inspection using the dye penetrant procedure. Examination of the airplane's Airworthiness Directives Compliance Log showed that new landing gear saddles (same part number, 1241423-1 and 1241423-2) were installed on November 11, 1992. At the time of the accident, the landing gear saddles had been in service 3,681 hours. The pilot entered a left downwind for runway 6 and when the airspeed was below 140 knots, he lowered the gear, and put the flaps down. He looked at the landing gear mirror and saw that the left main gear did not look right. The gear position indicator lights were all green, indicating the gear was down and locked. The pilot aborted the approach and climbed out to the west of the airport. The pilot recycled the gear 4 to 5 times. He could get the left gear to swing, but could not get it all the way down into the locked position. The pilot executed a low approach over the field to have the gear configuration verified by people on the ground. After an hour in the air, the pilot retracted the gear and belly-landed the airplane on runway 18. Examination of the left main landing gear revealed that the left main landing gear saddle was cracked through. No other anomalies were found. Source: NTSB Aviation Accident Database (Pre-2008 Archive) Retrieved: 2026-02-12