Bonanza A35

If you move the landing gear selector and the gear does not move, or if it begins to move but then stops and pops the circuit breaker without fully extending or retracting, the temptation is to reset the breaker if needed and try again—to cycle the landing gear. But the gear failed to operate correctly for a reason: frequently, a bent pushrod or rod end, damage inside the gear actuator (“transmission”), or some other mechanical problem.

At approach speeds, extending the landing gear causes the airplane to descend at 500 to 600 feet per minute. Use gear extension, not power reduction, to begin your final descent—you won’t forget because the airplane will not go down without it. Flying “by the numbers,” extend landing gear to begin descending in a visual pattern, and at glideslope/glidepath intercept or the final approach fix on an instrument approach.

ABS extends condolences to the families and friends of these ABS members who recently passed away:

Where can you repair or overhaul landing gear components? On the ABS website MAINTENANCE menu, select Aircraft Technical Information. The first link on that page is the ABS Technical Resources List, the list the ABS Maintenance Technical Advisors use. Landing gear system sources and contact information are listed for:landing gear actuators,

Every time you preflight your airplane, check that the manual landing gear extension hand crank is both stowed and accessible.

Almost every week, one or more Beech aircraft suffer a gear mishap of some type, whether from a hard landing, poor pilot technique, gear instead of flap retraction, just plain forgetting to put the gear down, or from a mechanical failure of some type. Fewer and fewer of these planes are being rebuilt due to the high cost of repairs, which is diminishing the size of our flyable fleet.

Congratulations to these ABS members who have earned a new ABS AVIATOR status:

When you put the landing gear down, don’t release the gear switch until you have confirmed full extension. Holding the handle is a reminder to check all indications before assuming the landing gear has extended properly.

My new-to-me P35 needs a gear warning horn adjustment; it comes on at 20” manifold pressure. My A&P says it should be 18” manifold pressure based on the Maintenance Manual. I thought it would be lower. What is correct and where can it be found?

ABS highly recommends you follow Beech's recommended landing gear component servicing and overhaul/replacement schedule that appears in Section VIII of your Pilot's Operating Handbook and the Beech maintenance or shop manuals. For the landing gear system this includes:

One of the greatest benefits of taking your airplane to an ABS Beechcraft® Maintenance Evaluation (BME) is the thorough check of your landing gear system, including:

I’m currently working on a 1993 F33A that is having issues with the landing gear retraction. When the landing gear is swung while up on jack stands, the up limit switch is maxing out and actually being bent slightly from the screw on the transmission. The up-limit switch tests are good, and it has been changed just to be sure. I have tried changing the Dynamic Brake Relay (DBR) as well as polishing all the contacts on it thinking that it was the reason for the coast. I can hear the DBR actuate in both directions with the motor disconnected, and it seems to be functioning as intended. I removed the motor and held it in my hand while checking the up and down limit switches and it stops immediately in both directions while connected to the DBR. I have tried three different grounds for the DBR and even tried putting the motor straight to ground (all were tested with a Fluke 179 and were good grounds). The only weird thing I have noticed is when I had the motor in my hand, it sounded like it was spinning faster when I was going toward gear up than gear down.…

Since I received my newer B36TC back from exterior paint and interior redo, my landing gear warning horn does not go off when the throttle is pulled back to idle. This was confirmed on jack stands and tested in the idle position.

Recently, I saw this on the FAA’s accident reporting website:

As of June 30, 2026, there have been 53 reported accidents involving Beech Bonanzas, Debonairs, Barons, and Travel Airs this year. All information is preliminary and subject to revision as the final, official investigations conclude. Please review the trends suggested by these reports and develop a training and practice plan to help you avoid repeating the accident history.