Incident Overview
A student pilot and their instructor were practicing simulated emergency landings at an uncontrolled turf airport. The exercise involved a simulated engine failure approach. While on final approach, a recovery was initiated at 500 feet above ground level (AGL). Shortly after, the engine began to run rough.
Precautionary Landing
The instructor took control of the airplane and elected to perform a power-on precautionary landing, despite the fact that level flight could be maintained. The landing was conducted onto a wet, soft turf runway.
Ground Loop
During the landing roll, the airplane's right main landing gear dug into the soft ground. This caused the right wing to strike the ground, resulting in a ground loop.
Possible Contributing Factor
Investigation revealed that sometime during the last simulated emergency landing exercise, the student pilot may have inadvertently moved the magneto switch from the BOTH position to either the LEFT or RIGHT position. This action could have caused the engine to run on a single magneto, leading to the roughness experienced.