Air Tractor AT-802 Hard Landing at Castellón Aerodrome (EC-IHZ)

Incident Overview and Aircraft Details On Saturday, 10 September 2005, at 16:00 local time, an Air Tractor AT-802 with registration EC-IHZ, operated by Avialsa, S.L., experienced a hard landing at Castellón Aerodrome. The aircraft was equipped with a single Pratt & Whitney Canada PT6A-67AG engine. The pilot in command was a 54-year-old commercial pilot with 12,000 total flight hours and 83:35 hours on type. The flight was a commercial aerial work operation for fire surveillance, lasting approximately one hour, and had departed from the same aerodrome. ## Sequence of Events and Damage During the final approach to runway 36, the pilot reported crosswind from the right of approximately 60° and 10 kt, with light turbulence at low altitude. As the pilot initiated the flare, the aircraft sank rapidly, losing altitude quickly. The pilot did not have sufficient time to correct the sink, resulting in a very hard landing. The aircraft initially impacted primarily on the left main landing gear, which broke its spring. This caused the aircraft to rotate, depart the runway, and slide across the terrain. The aircraft came to rest with its longitudinal axis at an angle of approximately 60° to the runway, nearly with the wind. The aircraft sustained major damage. In addition to the broken left landing gear spring, four of the five propeller blades were bent, and the right landing gear, lower fuselage, and various structural components and coverings were damaged. The pilot, the sole occupant, was uninjured. ## Meteorological Conditions and Investigation Findings Meteorological conditions were CAVOK, with a temperature of 24 °C and wind from 60° at 10/12 kt. The investigation confirmed that the incident occurred due to a sink during the flare in the final approach. The sink was attributed to insufficient speed margin above the reference landing speed, a condition particularly required by the presence of crosswind. The aircraft flight manual indicated a maximum demonstrated crosswind of 17 kt and recommended indicated airspeeds of 93 kt for a weight of 5,670 kg and 105 kt for 7,250 kg with flaps fully extended. The investigation noted that maintaining a higher speed margin would have been advisable given the crosswind and light turbulence, and was feasible due to adequate runway length and absence of other traffic.