A North American P-51C-5-NT (which started its operational life with the United States Army Air Force with s/n 42-103645 on the 7th of April 1944) was operating a VFR flight out of Dallas Executive Airport (KRBD) on this day in aviation history.

At 10:15 lt (local time), the aircraft took off from Dallas Executive Airport. The weather was good, the following was recorded by the pilot: wind 340 at 10 knots, no clouds, with unlimited visibility.
After an uneventful flight, the aircraft was lined up for a landing on runway 35 at Dallas Executive Airport, a 3800 feet long and 150 feet wide concrete runway. The aircraft touched down on its belly at 11.00 lt. This caused substantial damage to the fuselage, left-wing and engine. The propellor was sheared off at the hub. The pilot did not sustain any injuries.

The belly landing was investigated by the National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) they determined that the probable cause of the accident was;
"The pilot's failure to extend the landing gear prior to landing, which resulted in substantial damage to the fuselage during landing."
In the pilot/operator Aircraft Accident/Incident report, completed by the pilot, the following recommendation was given by the pilot;
"This land event could have been prevented with a higher degree of diligence to checklists and memory checks.

The NTSB recorded the following findings;
Aircraft Gear extension and retract sys - Not used/operated
Personnel issues Use of checklist - Pilot
Personnel issues Task monitoring/vigilance - Pilot
The aircraft was repaired and returned to flight. Sadly on the 4th of November 2021 another gear-up landing, again resulting in substantial damage.
Comments