A short flight from Fort Hood to T. S. T. C ended with an extraordinary turn of events, that will never be forgotten. The aircraft’s landing gear retracted on landing, causing minor damage to the airframe, the loss of an engine, and eventually the demise of the aircraft. As the main gear struck the ground, the aircraft was in perfect position for landing. The nose of the aircraft was high, so it could be eased, gently to the ground. The nose was coming down slowly, but when it made contact with the concrete, it retracted back into the chin of the aircraft.
This caused the nose to fall to the ground. This, in turn, caused scrapes on the nose and wings. The propeller blades bent when they came in contact with the ground, along with the wingtips. Even after all that, the aircraft was still flyable, because on an aircraft of its’ size, that kind of damage is considered minor. Emergency vehicles rushed out to help the pilots out of the aircraft, when a small fire started in the right engine. While the fireman was putting out the fire, the truck was slowly moving forward.
Subsequently, the truck driver left the truck in gear. It bumped into the aircraft’s engine, and kept on going. Before the driver could stop the truck, it knocked the engine off of the aircraft. Ironicly the plane was more expensive to repair, than to buy a new aircraft, after that. So the aircraft was laid to rest in a spare parts yard. This proves that small things, that you think will turn out alright, can have disastrous results. The aircraft could have been repaired, before the firetruck knocked off the engine.
