Incident Overview
On 17 September 2013, at approximately 10:55 local time, a Cessna 172R aircraft, registration A6-HSS, operated by Fujairah Aviation Academy, departed from Fujairah International Airport for a cross-country flight. The aircraft was flown by a student pilot completing the 100-hour solo flight requirement for a Commercial Pilot License. After touchdown on Runway 11, the aircraft veered left from the runway centerline, exited the runway, and continued rolling on the runway strip. It came to a complete stop approximately 359 meters from the point where it first departed the centerline.
Aircraft and Pilot Information
The aircraft was a Cessna C172R Skyhawk, powered by a single Lycoming IO-360-L2A engine with a fixed-pitch propeller. The student pilot had accumulated about 192 flight hours and held a Private Pilot License, working toward a Commercial Pilot License. Post-incident medical tests revealed no physical or physiological factors that could have affected the pilot's performance.
Flight Sequence
The student pilot arrived at the airport at 07:30 local time, reviewed the METAR weather data, and filed a flight plan that included a touch-and-go landing. During the landing flare on Runway 11, as airspeed decayed, the necessary increases in aileron and rudder inputs were not applied. After touchdown, the required aileron deflection into the wind was not made, resulting in a left veer. No mechanical anomalies with the flight controls, steering, or brakes were reported by the pilot prior to the event.
Analysis and Findings
The investigation determined that the improper handling of the aircraft's directional control during the landing sequence was the cause of the runway excursion. Specifically, during the flare, the student pilot did not increase aileron and rudder inputs as the airspeed decreased, and after touchdown, he did not apply the gradual increase in aileron deflection needed to counteract the crosswind.
A contributing factor was the student pilot's lack of situational awareness due to fixation on cockpit indications. This fixation, which likely began during the flare and continued for a few seconds after touchdown, prevented him from using external peripheral visual references to aid in directional control.
Safety Recommendations
The report issued safety recommendations to Fujairah Aviation Academy emphasizing the importance of proper use of external references versus instrument references during landing, handling directional control in the flare and landing roll in crosswind conditions, and recovery techniques if the aircraft begins to veer. A recommendation was also addressed to the General Civil Aviation Authority (GCAA) to reinforce landing techniques in flight training organization oversight programs across the UAE.