The National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) issued an urgent recommendation Wednesday, calling for immediate action on certain Bombardier Learjet aircraft after investigators found that landing gear on multiple models could separate from the airframe during landing.
The recommendation, directed to the FAA, urges the agency to require operators of 10 Learjet models—affecting 1,883 airplanes in service—to comply with Bombardier service bulletins issued in March. A second recommendation calls for Bombardier to revise its maintenance procedures to include a post-maintenance visual check confirming that the main gear’s aft trunnion pin and retaining bolt are correctly aligned and secured.
The action stems from the NTSB’s ongoing investigation into a Feb. 10 runway excursion in Scottsdale, Arizona, involving a Learjet 35A that veered off the runway and struck a parked Gulfstream G200. The Learjet’s captain was killed, and three others were seriously injured. Investigators found that the left main landing gear separated from the wing structure after an incorrectly installed retaining bolt failed to engage the trunnion pin.
The misassembly, the NTSB said, cannot be readily detected during routine maintenance or preflight checks. The agency’s report noted similar cases in 1995, 2001, and 2008, in which Learjet main gear detached after improper installation.
According to Bombardier, only about 12 percent of the affected Learjets have undergone the inspection outlined in the March service bulletins. The FAA determined in July that no additional regulatory action was required, opting not to issue an airworthiness directive.
The NTSB said that decision was “incommensurate with the longstanding aviation safety risk,” citing the simplicity of the inspection—estimated at two hours per aircraft—and Bombardier’s own support for a mandated requirement.
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