Incident Description
On Friday, April 20, 2001, at approximately 12:00 local time, a Cessna 152, registration EC-DKN, began its takeoff roll on runway 31 at Sabadell Airport. The aircraft accelerated normally but suddenly veered off the left side of the runway about 150 meters before rapid exit B. It continued across the runway strip, crossed its boundary, and entered the parking apron, where it struck the tail of aircraft EC-DFM with its left wing and then collided with the central fuselage of aircraft EC-DBP, coming to a stop.
Emergency Response
Airport emergency services arrived quickly. The engine was still running, and the pilot was inside, conscious but appearing to be in a state of shock, unresponsive to questions. With assistance from members of the Aeroclub Barcelona-Sabadell, they shut down the engine and removed the pilot, who showed no signs of physical injury.
Injuries and Damage
The pilot, the sole occupant, suffered no physical injuries. He experienced a nervous crisis from which he later recovered. The Cessna 152 sustained damage to the propeller, left wing leading edge, and central section of the tail empennage. The parked aircraft involved were a Morane Saulnier MS-893-E (EC-DFM) with damage to the central fuselage, and a Piper PA-28-140 (EC-DBP) with damage to the tail.
Meteorological Information
At the time of the accident, wind was less than 4 knots, visibility exceeded 10 km, and temperature was 15 °C.
Pilot Information
The pilot, aged 45, held a valid private pilot license with 160 total flight hours, all on the accident aircraft type.
Analysis and Conclusions
An inspection of the aircraft revealed all flight controls operated correctly. The only discrepancy found was that the nose wheel shimmy damper was slightly low on pressure, which would have caused vibrations during the takeoff roll. Such vibrations can normally be mitigated by applying slight back pressure on the elevator to reduce nose wheel load. In this accident, the oscillation of the nose wheel apparently induced a state of nervousness in the pilot that prevented him from taking any action to control the aircraft.