What happened
The aircraft sustained substantial damage after colliding with a runway threshold light during the landing phase of flight. According to the account provided by the certified flight instructor (CFI) on board, the private pilot had been instructed to execute a forward slip as part of the landing maneuver. During this approach, the CFI observed that the flight path was lower than desired. In an effort to correct the situation and prevent a hard landing or undershoot, the instructor added power to the engine. Despite this intervention, the aircraft remained too low relative to the runway surface and impacted the threshold lighting fixture.
The investigation
The factual narrative provided by the certified flight instructor indicates that the primary issue was an excessively low approach path during a forward slip landing. The attempt to recover altitude by adding power occurred after the CFI determined the situation was critical, but it was insufficient to avoid contact with the runway threshold light.
Findings
The collision with the runway threshold light was caused by the aircraft being too low during the final approach. The certified flight instructor's decision to add power was a reactive measure to a low approach that could not be fully corrected in time.