Narrative:

On may/thu/02, I was flying a 1983 beechcraft bonanza A36 back to greensboro, nc, from baltimore, md. The WX was cavu. My alternator out light illuminated and when I reset it, it came back on. However, after flipping it off and on a couple of times, I did get a temporary charge. I decided to continue my flight to greensboro so that our local mechanic could repair the problem. In order to conserve battery power, I turned off all radios and flew VFR at 4500 ft outside of any controled airspace. When within about 40 mi of gso, I tried calling approach control on 118.5. They could not hear me so I elected to descend to 2500 ft to stay below incoming traffic and to try to call them as I got closer. I had a hand-held receiver (I could hear but not transmit). We called the FBO at the greensboro airport on a cell phone and asked them to call the tower to tell them we were coming in, that we couldn't broadcast but we were listening on 118.5. Greensboro approach cleared us to land on runway 23. I heard that over my handheld radio. I tried to extend the gear electrically. It started down but there was not enough power left in the battery to get it down fully. The gear-in-transit light was on but extremely dim. I followed the manual landing gear extension checklist. I pulled the landing gear circuit breaker. I have had to crank gear down before so I knew the final part of getting the gear down is the toughest. I asked the owner of the airplane, who knows more about his airplane than most pilots, to finish cranking down the gear since it was much easier for him to reach than me. The checklist said to crank counterclockwise about 50 turns. We didn't know how much the battery had extended it so I told the owner to finish cranking until it would not turn any further. I concentrated on flying the airplane and looking for traffic. He turned the manual gear extension crank fully until he could not turn it anymore at all. I verified that it would not turn any more as did another pilot sitting in the copilot seat. I looked at the gear indicators, but there were no lights illuminated. Neither the gear-in-transit nor the gear down lights were lit. I figured the battery was too weak for them to work. No other lights were illuminated, including the alternator out light. Satisfied that the gear was down and locked, we came in for a landing. I wanted to land as gently as possible just to be on the safe side so my flare was gentle. Since I have electric flaps, I had to land without them since they wouldn't work. My landing was extremely smooth. When I heard the scraping sound of metal on the runway, as soon as we came to a stop, I instructed my passenger to open the door and get out. None of us were hurt but my first observation was that the gear was still in the wells. The gear doors were shut. There was very little damage to the airframe. The propeller was bent, the engine will have to be inspected, but there was very little damage to the belly of the plane. Even the nose gear doors were unscratched. Looking back on the incident, my only conclusion is that the owner must have turned the gear handle the wrong way. While he thought he was extending the gear, in actuality, he was raising it. He turned it so completely that when I reached back to verify that it had been cranked all the way down, it would not turn any further. The other pilot checked it, too, and we thought it was cranked down completely. I never heard any xmissions from approach control telling me not to land, that my gear was not down, so I relied on what I thought was the only method which was turn the handle as far as it would go. What did I learn from this? I am going to buy a handheld radio I can transmit on. I would have been able to contact the tower to ask for a visual inspection. I do think I performed the most important item first, which is 'fly the airplane.' I maintained control at all times and did make a beautiful, although expensive, landing. Upon replaying the incident over and over in my mind, the one thing I didn't do that I wish I had thought about was to press the 'test' switch to see ifthe green lights might have come on. I don't think they would have since I didn't have any other lights, nor did I hear the horn that comes on when the power is pulled back and the gear is still retracted. I know this horn works because I had recently taken the airplane to a service clinic and they checked it. They let me listen so that I would know what it sounded like. That horn never sounded, again indicating no power left in the battery.

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Original NASA ASRS Text

Title: AFTER LOSING ALL ELECTRICAL PWR THE PLT OF A BE36 MAKES A GEAR UP LNDG AT GSO, NC.

Narrative: ON MAY/THU/02, I WAS FLYING A 1983 BEECHCRAFT BONANZA A36 BACK TO GREENSBORO, NC, FROM BALTIMORE, MD. THE WX WAS CAVU. MY ALTERNATOR OUT LIGHT ILLUMINATED AND WHEN I RESET IT, IT CAME BACK ON. HOWEVER, AFTER FLIPPING IT OFF AND ON A COUPLE OF TIMES, I DID GET A TEMPORARY CHARGE. I DECIDED TO CONTINUE MY FLT TO GREENSBORO SO THAT OUR LCL MECH COULD REPAIR THE PROB. IN ORDER TO CONSERVE BATTERY PWR, I TURNED OFF ALL RADIOS AND FLEW VFR AT 4500 FT OUTSIDE OF ANY CTLED AIRSPACE. WHEN WITHIN ABOUT 40 MI OF GSO, I TRIED CALLING APCH CTL ON 118.5. THEY COULD NOT HEAR ME SO I ELECTED TO DSND TO 2500 FT TO STAY BELOW INCOMING TFC AND TO TRY TO CALL THEM AS I GOT CLOSER. I HAD A HAND-HELD RECEIVER (I COULD HEAR BUT NOT XMIT). WE CALLED THE FBO AT THE GREENSBORO ARPT ON A CELL PHONE AND ASKED THEM TO CALL THE TWR TO TELL THEM WE WERE COMING IN, THAT WE COULDN'T BROADCAST BUT WE WERE LISTENING ON 118.5. GREENSBORO APCH CLRED US TO LAND ON RWY 23. I HEARD THAT OVER MY HANDHELD RADIO. I TRIED TO EXTEND THE GEAR ELECTRICALLY. IT STARTED DOWN BUT THERE WAS NOT ENOUGH PWR LEFT IN THE BATTERY TO GET IT DOWN FULLY. THE GEAR-IN-TRANSIT LIGHT WAS ON BUT EXTREMELY DIM. I FOLLOWED THE MANUAL LNDG GEAR EXTENSION CHKLIST. I PULLED THE LNDG GEAR CIRCUIT BREAKER. I HAVE HAD TO CRANK GEAR DOWN BEFORE SO I KNEW THE FINAL PART OF GETTING THE GEAR DOWN IS THE TOUGHEST. I ASKED THE OWNER OF THE AIRPLANE, WHO KNOWS MORE ABOUT HIS AIRPLANE THAN MOST PLTS, TO FINISH CRANKING DOWN THE GEAR SINCE IT WAS MUCH EASIER FOR HIM TO REACH THAN ME. THE CHKLIST SAID TO CRANK COUNTERCLOCKWISE ABOUT 50 TURNS. WE DIDN'T KNOW HOW MUCH THE BATTERY HAD EXTENDED IT SO I TOLD THE OWNER TO FINISH CRANKING UNTIL IT WOULD NOT TURN ANY FURTHER. I CONCENTRATED ON FLYING THE AIRPLANE AND LOOKING FOR TFC. HE TURNED THE MANUAL GEAR EXTENSION CRANK FULLY UNTIL HE COULD NOT TURN IT ANYMORE AT ALL. I VERIFIED THAT IT WOULD NOT TURN ANY MORE AS DID ANOTHER PLT SITTING IN THE COPLT SEAT. I LOOKED AT THE GEAR INDICATORS, BUT THERE WERE NO LIGHTS ILLUMINATED. NEITHER THE GEAR-IN-TRANSIT NOR THE GEAR DOWN LIGHTS WERE LIT. I FIGURED THE BATTERY WAS TOO WEAK FOR THEM TO WORK. NO OTHER LIGHTS WERE ILLUMINATED, INCLUDING THE ALTERNATOR OUT LIGHT. SATISFIED THAT THE GEAR WAS DOWN AND LOCKED, WE CAME IN FOR A LNDG. I WANTED TO LAND AS GENTLY AS POSSIBLE JUST TO BE ON THE SAFE SIDE SO MY FLARE WAS GENTLE. SINCE I HAVE ELECTRIC FLAPS, I HAD TO LAND WITHOUT THEM SINCE THEY WOULDN'T WORK. MY LNDG WAS EXTREMELY SMOOTH. WHEN I HEARD THE SCRAPING SOUND OF METAL ON THE RWY, AS SOON AS WE CAME TO A STOP, I INSTRUCTED MY PAX TO OPEN THE DOOR AND GET OUT. NONE OF US WERE HURT BUT MY FIRST OBSERVATION WAS THAT THE GEAR WAS STILL IN THE WELLS. THE GEAR DOORS WERE SHUT. THERE WAS VERY LITTLE DAMAGE TO THE AIRFRAME. THE PROP WAS BENT, THE ENG WILL HAVE TO BE INSPECTED, BUT THERE WAS VERY LITTLE DAMAGE TO THE BELLY OF THE PLANE. EVEN THE NOSE GEAR DOORS WERE UNSCRATCHED. LOOKING BACK ON THE INCIDENT, MY ONLY CONCLUSION IS THAT THE OWNER MUST HAVE TURNED THE GEAR HANDLE THE WRONG WAY. WHILE HE THOUGHT HE WAS EXTENDING THE GEAR, IN ACTUALITY, HE WAS RAISING IT. HE TURNED IT SO COMPLETELY THAT WHEN I REACHED BACK TO VERIFY THAT IT HAD BEEN CRANKED ALL THE WAY DOWN, IT WOULD NOT TURN ANY FURTHER. THE OTHER PLT CHKED IT, TOO, AND WE THOUGHT IT WAS CRANKED DOWN COMPLETELY. I NEVER HEARD ANY XMISSIONS FROM APCH CTL TELLING ME NOT TO LAND, THAT MY GEAR WAS NOT DOWN, SO I RELIED ON WHAT I THOUGHT WAS THE ONLY METHOD WHICH WAS TURN THE HANDLE AS FAR AS IT WOULD GO. WHAT DID I LEARN FROM THIS? I AM GOING TO BUY A HANDHELD RADIO I CAN XMIT ON. I WOULD HAVE BEEN ABLE TO CONTACT THE TWR TO ASK FOR A VISUAL INSPECTION. I DO THINK I PERFORMED THE MOST IMPORTANT ITEM FIRST, WHICH IS 'FLY THE AIRPLANE.' I MAINTAINED CTL AT ALL TIMES AND DID MAKE A BEAUTIFUL, ALTHOUGH EXPENSIVE, LNDG. UPON REPLAYING THE INCIDENT OVER AND OVER IN MY MIND, THE ONE THING I DIDN'T DO THAT I WISH I HAD THOUGHT ABOUT WAS TO PRESS THE 'TEST' SWITCH TO SEE IFTHE GREEN LIGHTS MIGHT HAVE COME ON. I DON'T THINK THEY WOULD HAVE SINCE I DIDN'T HAVE ANY OTHER LIGHTS, NOR DID I HEAR THE HORN THAT COMES ON WHEN THE PWR IS PULLED BACK AND THE GEAR IS STILL RETRACTED. I KNOW THIS HORN WORKS BECAUSE I HAD RECENTLY TAKEN THE AIRPLANE TO A SVC CLINIC AND THEY CHKED IT. THEY LET ME LISTEN SO THAT I WOULD KNOW WHAT IT SOUNDED LIKE. THAT HORN NEVER SOUNDED, AGAIN INDICATING NO PWR LEFT IN THE BATTERY.

Data retrieved from NASA's ASRS site as of July 2007 and automatically converted to unabbreviated mixed upper/lowercase text. This report is for informational purposes with no guarantee of accuracy. See NASA's ASRS site for official report.