Landing Gear Failure Leads to Fatal Plane Crash – Episode 261

An examination of the preliminary NTSB report of a February 10, 2025 crash of a Learjet 35 that killed the pilot. Todd Curtis, Greg Feith, and John Goglia examine the issues with the landing gear that caused the accident.

The flight crew was conducting a normal approach and was apparently unaware that the left main landing gear had failed. Witness photos taken during the approach showed that the left main landing gear was twisted almost 180 degrees from its normal position.

About eight months before the accident in Scottsdale, the aircraft had an incident in Oklahoma where the left main landing gear sustained damage. Although the NTSB found that a hard landing inspection was performed after the incident, there was no mention of what specific inspections were done.

Photos show that the left main landing gear was not properly lubricated. John discussed how investigations often do not look deeply into the causes of maintenance issues, often stopping their investigation at the maintenance hangar door.

Resources:

NTSB Preliminary Report of a February 10, 2025 Learjet Crash in Arizona
NTSB Accident Report from a 1997 Crash of a 747 in Guam