Introduction
On 27 June 2017, at approximately 1100 UTC, an Aero AT-3 R100 aircraft, registration G-SYEL, was involved in an accident during a landing at Sywell Aerodrome, Northamptonshire. The aircraft was conducting a training flight with a student pilot as the sole occupant. No injuries were reported.
Flight Details
The aircraft was a single-engine Rotax 912-S2 piston engine, manufactured in 2006. The student pilot, aged 46, had a total of 16 hours of flying experience, all on type, with 12 hours in the last 90 days and 2 hours in the last 28 days. The flight was the pilot's first solo circuit.
The weather at the time included wind from 090° at 6 knots, visibility 10 km, and an overcast cloud layer at 1,500 ft. Runway 05, a grass surface measuring 602 m long and 30 m wide, was in use.
Accident Sequence
The aircraft departed normally and established on the downwind leg at 900 ft above aerodrome level, where the pilot lowered the first stage of flap. Light rain then moved into the circuit, reducing visibility. The pilot completed the circuit and, when established on finals, lowered full flap at approximately 65 kt.
Both the student pilot and the instructor, who was monitoring the circuit, considered the approach to be normal. However, the touchdown, while smooth, was flat. Following several bounces, the nose landing gear collapsed, and the aircraft came to a stop. The pilot then switched off the fuel and electrical systems and vacated the aircraft.
Pilot's Comments
The pilot believed that the approach was slightly fast and that the touchdown may have resulted in a Pilot Induced Oscillation (PIO), leading to the collapse of the nose landing gear. Additionally, the deterioration in weather conditions made the pilot reluctant to execute a go-around.