Narrative:

Pilot moved gear switch in the opposite direction of intended direction. While parked; doing a hydraulic gear check in accordance to the 'normal checklist' by the aircraft manufacturer; the pilot inadvertently actuated 'gear up' instead of 'gear down.' the design of this piper chieftain aircraft landing gear system is that when the aircraft is on the ground; the gear handle cannot be moved to the 'gear up' position. A 'rod' through electrical and mechanical devices prevents the gear handle from moving in the 'neutral' position to the 'gear up' position. Apparently this well-thought out design did not work because the gear handle was moved in the 'up' position and the hydraulic pump operated perfectly. Hydraulic fluid released the nose gear from the 'over-center' locked position and down came the plane. So much for that design and thought. Prevent further occurrence of this nature: maintenance responsibility. Hydraulic gear check should be done by ia or a&P and not by pilots on every fight. This should be a maintenance check and not part of the checklist for the pilot. This aircraft requires a mandatory 'annual'. A 'gear swing' and check of that 'fail-safe' prevention of a 'gear up' movement is included in that procedure. Whether the position of the sensor/solenoid on a squat switch and/or electrical side was not connected or 'open'; that is not known. If this 'gear down' check is mandatory on the checklist and cannot be changed; the pilot should double and triple check the position of the gear handle direction prior to actuating the gear switch. Perhaps even practicing the direction of the gear direction before touching the gear switch may be prudent. Actuating the left and right pumps not only checks the pumps' ability to function; but also whether there is an adequate amount of fluid to prompt the gear handle to return to its neutral position.

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Original NASA ASRS Text

Title: A PA-31's nose landing gear retracted when the pilot accidentally move the gear handle up instead of down while doing the preflight checklist. The safety interlocks failed allowing the nose gear to retract; damaging the propeller and engine.

Narrative: Pilot moved gear switch in the opposite direction of intended direction. While parked; doing a hydraulic gear check in accordance to the 'normal checklist' by the aircraft manufacturer; the pilot inadvertently actuated 'gear up' instead of 'gear down.' The design of this Piper Chieftain aircraft landing gear system is that when the aircraft is on the ground; the gear handle cannot be moved to the 'gear up' position. A 'rod' through electrical and mechanical devices prevents the gear handle from moving in the 'neutral' position to the 'gear up' position. Apparently this well-thought out design did not work because the gear handle was moved in the 'up' position and the hydraulic pump operated perfectly. Hydraulic fluid released the nose gear from the 'over-center' locked position and down came the plane. So much for that design and thought. Prevent further occurrence of this nature: maintenance responsibility. Hydraulic gear check should be done by IA or A&P and not by pilots on every fight. This should be a maintenance check and not part of the checklist for the pilot. This aircraft requires a mandatory 'ANNUAL'. A 'gear swing' and check of that 'fail-safe' prevention of a 'gear up' movement is included in that procedure. Whether the position of the sensor/solenoid on a squat switch and/or electrical side was not connected or 'open'; that is not known. If this 'gear down' check is mandatory on the checklist and cannot be changed; the pilot should double and triple check the position of the gear handle direction prior to actuating the gear switch. Perhaps even practicing the direction of the gear direction before touching the gear switch may be prudent. Actuating the left and right pumps not only checks the pumps' ability to function; but also whether there is an adequate amount of fluid to prompt the gear handle to return to its neutral position.

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.