Accident Summary
A pilot-in-command reported that her airplane experienced a hard landing on a runway, leading to the separation of all landing gear from the fuselage.
Pilot Statement
According to the pilot-in-command, she encountered a downdraft while on short final approach. The airplane first touched down about 4 feet short of the runway surface. After the initial touchdown, the airplane bounced, then landed hard on the runway. This hard landing caused all landing gear to separate from the fuselage.
Environmental Conditions
The point of first touchdown was on a slope that descended away from the runway at approximately 30 degrees. The end of the runway was located about 100 feet from a river bank, which dropped rapidly by about 20 feet.
Sequence of Events
The approach proceeded normally until the downdraft was encountered. The unintended touchdown short of the runway occurred on the sloped area. The subsequent bounce and hard landing on the runway proper resulted in structural failure of the landing gear attachment points.