Incident Overview

Date: Monday 30 September 1968
Aircraft Type: Airspeed AS.57 Ambassador 2
Owner/operator: Dan-Air Services
Registration Number: G-AMAG
Location: Manston Airport (MSE) – ÿ United Kingdom
Phase of Flight: Landing
Status: Destroyed, written off
Casualties: Fatalities: 0 / Occupants: 2
Component Affected: Right main gearRight main gear
Category: Accident
A right main gear landed at Gatwick Airport with a persistent issue ? the gear failed to lock up after touchdown. Subsequent attempts to extend the gear resulted in the gear warning light remaining on. After multiple attempts to extend the gear, the pilot landed on a foam carpet at Manston Airport, and the starboard undercarriage pin fractured, causing the gear to drop under its own weight and prevent the up-lock catch from disengaging. This resulted in the gear being recycled repeatedly without success.A right main gear landed at Gatwick Airport with a persistent issue ? the gear failed to lock up after touchdown. Subsequent attempts to extend the gear resulted in the gear warning light remaining on. After multiple attempts to extend the gear, the pilot landed on a foam carpet at Manston Airport, and the starboard undercarriage pin fractured, causing the gear to drop under its own weight and prevent the up-lock catch from disengaging. This resulted in the gear being recycled repeatedly without success.

Description

After a touch-and-go landing at Gatwick Airport, the right main gear didn’t lock up. The gear was recycled and the pilot then checked the gear visually and the gear appeared to be fully retracted. On gear extension for the next landing, the right main gear warning light remained on. The gear was recycled several times, but without success. Other attempts (high g turns, using the hand pump, and touching the runway) also failed. It was then decided to make a wheels-up landing on a foam carpet at Manston. PROBABLE CAUSE: The starboard undercarriage pin had fractured and fallen out of its housing. This permitted the assembly to drop under its own weight and, as a result it was mechanically impossible for the up-lock catch to disengage from the pin on the undercarriage leg.

Primary Cause

Fractured starboard undercarriage pin preventing up-lock catch disengagement.Fractured starboard undercarriage pin preventing up-lock catch disengagement.

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