What happened
The accident occurred during a training flight involving a student pilot and a certified flight instructor (CFI). The student was conducting a series of touch-and-go landings. During one such maneuver, the CFI observed that the student flared the aircraft too late for landing. This resulted in the main wheels bouncing on the runway surface, which caused the airplane to become airborne once more.
The CFI attempted to recover control and altitude, but the aircraft settled into muddy terrain located off the side of the runway. Upon impact with the soft ground, the nose gear collapsed, causing the airplane to nosed over.
The investigation
Post-acc examination revealed that the nose landing gear had collapsed due to the forces generated when the aircraft settled into the muddy area adjacent to the paved surface. No mechanical failures of the flight controls or propulsion system were identified as contributing factors.