Incident Overview
A private pilot with an expired flight review was participating in a recurrency flight to complete the review. During the flight, the instructor reduced engine power and directed the pilot to execute a simulated forced landing. The pilot attempted to stretch the glide to reach the runway threshold, resulting in airspeed dropping below the normal approach speed.
Sequence of Events
As the aircraft neared the approach end of the runway, the airspeed continued to decrease. Despite reaching the runway threshold, the aircraft dropped onto the runway just after crossing it. The impact was forceful enough to cause substantial damage to the aircraft. Throughout the maneuver, the instructor pilot did not add power nor did she call for termination of the simulated forced landing exercise.
Contributing Factors
The instructor pilot's failure to add power or terminate the simulated forced landing as the airspeed became critically low was noted in the investigation. The pilot's expired flight review and the decision to stretch the glide were also part of the operational context, but no explicit causal links were established in the source.