Preliminary Report: Citation I Gear Collapses

Cessna Citation I, Greensboro, N.C., Feb, 1, 2006–Citation N814ER, registered to Flite Services of Tampa, Fla., crashed on the runway at Piedmont Triad International Airport when the right main landing gear collapsed. The airplane was substantially damaged but the commercial pilot and copilot were not injured.

The flight had taken off from Asheville, N.C., bound for Asheboro, N.C., but the crew said they could not get the right gear to retract fully after takeoff. They tried normal emergency procedures and activated the gear bottle with no results. They diverted to Greensboro because there was a Cessna Citation repair facility there. The upper portion of the gear trunnion was found to be fractured and pulled out of the forward wing spar.