-by Pat Veillette

On the other end of the phone was a grim voice delivering the bad news. My favorite airplane had just experienced an accident with two friends on board. Fortunately both friends survived unhurt. The turboprop version of the DC-3 was substantially damaged when its left main landing gear collapsed while standing at Natrona County International Airport in Casper, Wyo.

The pilot told the investigators that the airplane had taxied out for departure on runway 3. He said he and his copilot were completing the checklist for departure when the copilot noticed high hydraulic pressure on the landing gear system. The copilot inadvertently performed the landing gear retraction procedure.…