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WPR12CA168

2012-04-17 · Oro Valley, Arizona, United States · Minor · 1 aircraft · Status: Completed

Airport 57AZ

N125AP has since been reassigned. It is now registered to a different aircraft (AIRBUS HELICOPTERS INC AS350B3, built 2022), which was not involved in this event.

Aircraft involved

Probable cause & findings

The pilot’s failure to lower the nose landing gear in time to prevent it from slamming onto the runway and collapsing.

Factual narrative

The pilot reported that during the landing on runway 19 he set the rear two wheels down and tried to hold the nose gear up longer than he previously had. As the trike began to slow the nose gear slammed onto the runway and collapsed. After the aircraft slid to a stop in the middle of the runway it tipped over onto its right side, which resulted in substantial damage to the right wing. The pilot reported the wind at the time of the landing was from 200 degrees at 6 to 8 knots. The pilot reported that during the landing he set the rear two wheels down and tried to hold the nose gear up longer than he previously had. As the trike began to slow, the nose gear slammed onto the runway and collapsed. After the aircraft slid to a stop in the middle of the runway, it tipped over onto its right side, which resulted in substantial damage to the right wing. Source: NTSB Aviation Accident Database Retrieved: 2026-02-12

NTSB Findings

FAA avdata. C = Cause, F = Factor.

  • C Personnel issues-Action/decision-Action-Incorrect action sequence-Pilot - C
  • C Aircraft-Aircraft oper/perf/capability-Performance/control parameters-Landing flare-Incorrect use/operation - C

Verbatim from NTSB's published report. Source file NTSB_2012_WPR12CA168.txt. Findings + structured fields enriched from FAA avall.mdb. Full investigation docket on data.ntsb.gov ↗.

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