Incident Overview
An aircraft experienced a hard landing that resulted in the collapse of the nose gear, followed by a fire. The event occurred after the pilot executed a series of maneuvers to manage an approach that was too high.
Approach and Maneuvers
The pilot initially approached the airport at an excessive altitude. The tower controller noticed this and inquired whether the pilot needed to perform a 360-degree turn to lose altitude. The pilot complied with a 360-degree turn but remained too high. Subsequently, the pilot performed a forward slip at 70 miles per hour with full flaps deployed, descending to within 100 feet of the runway.
Landing and Outcome
Just prior to touchdown, the aircraft's airspeed had dropped below 63 knots. The aircraft bounced twice upon landing before the nose gear collapsed. Following the collapse, a fire ignited. At one point during the sequence, the pilot considered initiating a go-around but never executed the maneuver.
Aircraft Damage
The hard landing and nose gear collapse caused structural damage to the aircraft, and the fire further affected the airframe.