| Crash location | 41.535000°N, 93.660556°W
Reported location is a long distance from the NTSB's reported nearest city. This often means that the location has a typo, or is incorrect. |
| Nearest city | Des Moines, IA
40.664752°N, 92.005175°W 105.1 miles away |
| Tail number | N400VL |
|---|---|
| Accident date | 12 Mar 2007 |
| Aircraft type | Piper PA-24-400 |
| Additional details: | None |
The airplane was substantially damaged during a wheels-up landing following a failure of the landing gear to extend. The pilot reported that during an approach for landing, the airplane's landing gear failed to extend fully. The pilot reported that during the first attempt to lower the landing gear he heard a "metallic-sounding 'clack.'" The pilot reported that he made several attempts to lower the landing gear using both the normal and emergency extension procedures. The pilot reported that he elected to divert to another airport to perform an emergency landing. Upon reaching the alternate airport, the pilot performed a fly-by and ground personnel confirmed that the landing gear was not fully extended. The pilot elected to perform a wheels-up landing. Postaccident examination of the airplane confirmed that the landing gear would not fully extend. Further examination revealed damage to the nose landing gear steering stops, the nose landing gear down lock mechanism, and the nose landing gear wheel well sidewall. The damage to the nose landing gear was consistent with exceeding the steering limits of the nose landing gear during ground handling.
the nose landing gear becoming jammed in a partially extended position during flight as a result of damage to the nose landing gear by ground personnel.