Narrative:

Prior to departure first officer returned from the preflight and reported that the aircraft would need de-icing with the wing flap tracks and gear struts impacted by snow. (The previous crew had left the flaps at 15.) taxi to the ice pad took about an hour due to poor visibility and traffic. The aircraft was de-iced and anti-iced prior to departure. Shortly after takeoff; I noticed the left main gear had failed to retract fully. We cycled the gear several times. The gear would extend and lock; but not fully retract. If the gear handle was left in the off position; the left main would freefall to the down and locking position. We referenced the QRH; but found no procedure for this condition. I elected to return to ZZZ where the visibility was around 1000 RVR or so. An overweight landing (1000 pounds) was necessary to preclude the possibility of a drop in RVR while burning off extra fuel. I notified the passengers and flight attendants via the PA of the situation; stressing that the safety of the flight was not compromised; but that we had to return to the field for operational reasons. I then spoke via interphone with the a flight attendant to ensure she understood the situation. Dispatch was advised via radio of our problem and pending return. I also advised them we would be landing overweight. The latest weather was received and all appropriate checklists completed. A CAT III ILS was briefed including the completion of the checklist. A normal CAT III was completed to a normal touchdown. After terminating the aircraft at the gate; the landing gear and overweight landing were written in the logbook and maintenance/dispatch notified. Prior to leaving the aircraft to catch our deadhead; I inspected the landing gear and found some ice on the inside of the main gear doors. The ice easily came off when I reached up to inspect it. I later informed maintenance of what I had found. The location of this ice was such that it would be easily missed by someone in an elevated ice truck. Better communication of our concerns about impacted snow would have helped. I would also recommend a spot light mounted on the fender of the truck to assist the ground crew in their work.

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Original NASA ASRS Text

Title: B737-500 returned to departure airport for an overweight; low minimums landing when the landing gear refused to retract completely.

Narrative: Prior to departure First Officer returned from the preflight and reported that the aircraft would need de-icing with the wing flap tracks and gear struts impacted by snow. (The previous crew had left the flaps at 15.) Taxi to the ice pad took about an hour due to poor visibility and traffic. The aircraft was de-iced and anti-iced prior to departure. Shortly after takeoff; I noticed the left main gear had failed to retract fully. We cycled the gear several times. The gear would extend and lock; but not fully retract. If the gear handle was left in the off position; the left main would freefall to the down and locking position. We referenced the QRH; but found no procedure for this condition. I elected to return to ZZZ where the visibility was around 1000 RVR or so. An overweight landing (1000 LBS) was necessary to preclude the possibility of a drop in RVR while burning off extra fuel. I notified the passengers and flight attendants via the PA of the situation; stressing that the safety of the flight was not compromised; but that we had to return to the field for operational reasons. I then spoke via interphone with the A Flight Attendant to ensure she understood the situation. Dispatch was advised via radio of our problem and pending return. I also advised them we would be landing overweight. The latest weather was received and all appropriate checklists completed. A CAT III ILS was briefed including the completion of the checklist. A normal CAT III was completed to a normal touchdown. After terminating the aircraft at the gate; the landing gear and overweight landing were written in the logbook and maintenance/dispatch notified. Prior to leaving the aircraft to catch our deadhead; I inspected the landing gear and found some ice on the inside of the main gear doors. The ice easily came off when I reached up to inspect it. I later informed maintenance of what I had found. The location of this ice was such that it would be easily missed by someone in an elevated ice truck. Better communication of our concerns about impacted snow would have helped. I would also recommend a spot light mounted on the fender of the truck to assist the ground crew in their work.

Data retrieved from NASA's ASRS site as of April 2012 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.