What happened
The instructor and student were conducting normal takeoff and landing exercises. On the sixth landing attempt, the pilot reported that the aircraft touched down on the main gear at the correct airspeed before the nose wheel collapsed, leading to a nose-over. However, an FAA Aviation Safety Inspector analyzed tire scuff marks which indicated the aircraft actually touched down nose first in a left crab approximately 200 feet short of the runway threshold. The aircraft slid on its nose, nosed over, and came to rest 130 feet from the touchdown marks.
The investigation
Following the incident, investigators examined the aircraft's control systems after removing bent panels and a broken nose strut. The elevator controls were found to operate normally once these damaged components were removed.