What happened
The flight was delayed, causing the aircraft to arrive after dark at an unfamiliar airport. The pilot had only about five hours of dual night experience. During the approach, the pilot landed hard due to a long and fast descent. After the aircraft bounced upon touchdown, the pilot initiated a go-around. During this maneuver, the aircraft stalled in a nose-high attitude and pulled to the right before impacting the ground to the right of the runway.
The investigation
The investigation focused on the flight dynamics during the landing and go-around phases. Evidence indicated that the initial approach was excessively long and fast, contributing to the hard landing. The subsequent stall occurred during the climb-out phase of the rejected landing attempt.
Findings
Contributing factors included the pilot's lack of night experience and disorientation during the flight. The unfamiliar airport environment and delayed arrival contributed to poor approach management. The decision to execute a go-around after a hard bounce led directly to the stall.