Date:	Tuesday 8 February 2011
Time:	00:30
Type:	Beechcraft B58 Baron
Owner/operator:	Katherine Aviation
Registration:	VH-ECL
MSN:	TH-1078
Year of manufacture:	1979
Fatalities:	Fatalities: 0 / Occupants: 1
Aircraft damage:	Substantial
Category:	Accident
Location:	Gove Airport, NT -   Australia
Phase:	Landing
Nature:	Ferry/positioning
Departure airport:
Destination airport:	Gove Airport (YPGV), NT
Investigating agency:	ATSB
Confidence Rating:	Accident investigation report completed and information captured

Narrative:
The pilot of a twin-engine Beechcraft Baron operated by Katherine Aviation in the Northern Territories was unable to lower the landing-gear due to a mechanical fault and was forced to circle over Nhulunbuy Airport for about an hour to burn off excess fuel before carrying out a successful wheels-up landing

Police and firefighters immediately covered the aircraft with foam as a precaution, but there was no fire and the pilot was able to get out of the plane without any injury.

Senior Sergeant Brendan Muldoon said the pilot did an excellent job in very trying circumstances. "The landing was as good as it could be without his landing gear," Senior Sergeant Muldoon said.

The interim ASTB accident investigation attributed the undercarriage failure to a gearbox shaft failure in the nosewheel machanism

Police said there was considerable damage to the propellers and undercarriage of the aircraft. Gove Airport was closed for several hours while the aircraft was removed - the pilot who was the only person on board - was uninjured

http://www.atsb.gov.au/media/3412453/aws11mar2011.pdf
http://www.regosearch.com/aircraft/au/ECL
http://www.ntnews.com.au/article/2011/02/08/211331_ntnews.html
http://www.aircentre.com.au/aircraft/news/2011/feb11wk2.htm
http://www.abc.net.au/news/2011-02-08/plane-forced-to-belly-land-at-nhulunbuy/1934946
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gove_Airport

Date/time	Contributor	Updates
08-Feb-2011 03:41	slowkid	Added
04-Oct-2011 12:24	Dr. John Smith	Updated [Time, Location, Destination airport, Source, Narrative]
04-Nov-2011 12:36	Dr. John Smith	Updated [Aircraft type, Nature, Source, Narrative]
04-Nov-2011 12:51	Dr. John Smith	Updated [Registration, Cn, Source]
07-Jun-2022 12:57	Ron Averes	Updated [Location, Narrative]