What happened
A private pilot was conducting flight training focused on short-field landing techniques under the supervision of a certified flight instructor. During the maneuver, the aircraft developed an airspeed that was lower than optimal for the phase of flight. The flight instructor did not intervene with corrective action in time to prevent the airspeed from decreasing further, which resulted in an excessively high sink rate.
The aircraft landed short of the designated airstrip. Upon touchdown, the nose gear collapsed under the impact forces. The aircraft subsequently nosed over onto its fuselage and wings.
The investigation
The examination of the event focused on the flight dynamics during the landing attempt. The primary mechanical failure was identified as the collapse of the nose landing gear due to the vertical load imposed by the hard touchdown and subsequent rotation.
Findings
Contributing factors included the development of slow airspeed and the lack of timely remedial action by the instructor. The aircraft sustained substantial damage to the nose gear and forward fuselage structure as a direct result of the nose-over impact.