What happened
During the landing phase, a student pilot operating a tail-wheel equipped airplane experienced a difficult touchdown. The pilot flared high and made a hard touchdown on the main wheels, which caused the aircraft to bounce back into the air.
In an attempt to recover from the bounce, the pilot lowered the nose to execute a three-point landing. However, upon the second touchdown, the aircraft was positioned to the left of the runway centerline. The pilot was unable to maintain the runway heading and continued to veer left, departing the runway into a dirt area. This maneuver resulted in a ground loop where the right wing tip and the right elevator made contact with the ground.
Findings
The aircraft sustained substantial damage as a result of the incident. There were no mechanical problems reported by the pilot prior to the accident.