Incident Overview
On July 29, 2015, at approximately 17:20 local time, a Cessna F182Q Skylane experienced a taxiing incident at Pobiednik Airport (EPKP) near Krakow, Poland. The pilot, holding a Private Pilot License (PPL(A)), was taxiing the aircraft from the hangar to the runway threshold for a planned departure to Spišská Nová Ves, Slovakia.
Circumstances
During taxi, the pilot felt the aircraft sink and heard a dull impact. Suspecting a problem, the pilot abandoned the flight and taxied back to the parking area for inspection. After engine shutdown, examination revealed that the nose landing gear strut was deformed and its upper attachment lug was fractured, with part of the firewall attachment missing.
Damage and Findings
The pilot then inspected the taxi route and discovered that the aircraft had unintentionally left the designated taxiway, causing the nose wheel to enter a depression in the terrain outside the taxiway boundary. The resulting impact damaged the nose landing gear. The pilot sustained no injuries.
Cause
The investigation determined that the incident was caused by insufficient observation of the taxi path by the pilot, which led to the aircraft wheel entering a terrain depression located outside the designated taxiway boundary, resulting in damage to the nose landing gear.
Safety Recommendations
No safety recommendations were issued by the investigating commission.