PIPER PA-32-301

Full Narrative

On April 26, 2010, about 1523 Alaska daylight time, a Piper PA-32-301 airplane, N8305H, sustained substantial damage when the landing gear collapsed during a hard landing at the King Cove Airport, King Cove, Alaska. The airplane was being operated by Peninsula Airways Inc., as Flight 421, a visual flight rules (VFR) scheduled commuter passenger flight under Title 14, CFR Part 135, when the accident occurred. The airline transport pilot and the four passengers were not injured. Visual meteorological conditions prevailed, and company flight following procedures were in effect. The flight departed Cold Bay, Alaska, about 1515.

During a telephone conversation with the National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) investigator-in-charge (IIC) on April 27, the pilot said he was on short final for runway 25, and his airspeed was indicating 100 knots. The pilot reported that he encountered wind gusts/shear and his airspeed dropped to zero, and the airplane landed hard. He said the left main landing gear collapsed. The pilot reported that he had landed at the airport earlier that day, and the conditions were windy but manageable. He said there were no mechanical problems with the airplane prior to the accident, and that the airplane sustained substantial damage to the left wing and fuselage.