Occurrence
On 18 June 2012, at 11:09 local time (08:09 UTC), a Piper Seneca PA-34-220T aircraft, registered YR-MDE, operated by the Romanian Aviation Academy (RAA), was performing a training flight from Băneasa Bucharest Airport (LRBS) to Craiova Airport (LRCV) and back. The crew consisted of an instructor pilot and two student pilots, with one student in the left cockpit seat and the other in the aft cabin.
During the last touch-and-go on runway 09 at Craiova Airport, the tire of the right main landing gear burst. The aircraft continued the take-off and returned to Băneasa. According to crew statements, after extending the landing gear for landing at Băneasa, the student in the back noticed a problem with the right main landing gear wheel and informed the instructor.
The crew notified Băneasa Tower of the malfunction, prompting the alert of fire and medical services. The aircraft touched down on runway 07 at 11:09 LT, rolled approximately 500 meters, then deviated 90 degrees to the right, leaving the concrete runway on the south side into grassy terrain. Upon entering the grass, the right engine propeller blades struck a cover of a rainwater drainage canal. After engine shutdown, the crew exited safely without requiring medical assistance.
The runway was closed by NOTAM for one hour (08:15–09:15 UTC) while the aircraft was recovered and towed to the RAA platform.
Aircraft and Crew Information
The aircraft was a Piper PA-34-220T Seneca, manufactured by Piper Aircraft, USA, serial number 3449197. It was powered by two Teledyne Continental TSIO-360-RB engines with Hartzell propellers. The aircraft was owned and operated by RAA.
The pilot-in-command held a Romanian ATPL license since December 1993, with MEP (land) class and IR qualifications, and an FI(A)–MEP flight instructor qualification valid until April 2015.
Damage
The right main landing gear tire and the landing gear itself were completely destroyed. The number 2 engine propeller blades were bent.
Meteorological Conditions
At the time of the tire burst at Craiova (06:58 UTC), wind was from 050° at 4 knots, visibility 6000 m, with scattered clouds at 400 ft and broken at 600 ft. At Băneasa at the time of landing (08:09 UTC), wind was from 080° at 4 knots, variable between 040° and 130°, CAVOK conditions with temperature 32°C. The investigation commission opined that meteorological conditions did not influence the occurrence.
Investigation Findings
The report noted that the instructor pilot mentioned previous deviations from the runway axis due to crosswind and vibrations from joints in the concrete runway slabs at Craiova. However, analysis showed the crosswind component was only 2.7 knots (1.3 m/s), which the commission determined did not influence the tire burst.
Favoring factors that might have led to the tire burst were identified as: a skidded or harder contact with joints in the runway slabs overgrown with vegetation, accidental operation of the landing brake, possible foreign object debris on the runway, or tire wear.
No explicit probable cause was stated in the final report.