Accident Narrative
On 11 July 2015 at 1340 UTC, a Europa aircraft, registration G-JHYS, was conducting a private flight and landing on grass Runway 29 at Laddingford Aerodrome, Kent. The approach was into wind and involved flying over trees. The pilot reported "quite a bit of turbulence on final approach" and described the conditions as "bumpy". The aircraft touched down to the left of the runway centreline and continued drifting left. The left wingtip made contact with long grass at the edge of the runway, causing the aircraft to yaw further left until it left the runway entirely. It then entered a drainage ditch and stopped abruptly. The pilot, who was uninjured, made the aircraft safe and vacated it normally.
The pilot believed the initial drift was probably caused by the turbulent conditions but was unable to explain why he could not regain runway heading before leaving the runway.
Aircraft and Pilot Information
The aircraft was a Europa, manufactured in 2001 (serial number PFA 247-13307), powered by one Rotax 914-UL piston engine. The pilot held a Private Pilot's Licence, was aged 74, and had accumulated 465 flying hours, of which 27 were on the accident type. In the previous 90 days he had flown 12 hours, and in the previous 28 days, 8 hours.
Damage
The accident resulted in damage to the propeller, undercarriage, and underside of the aircraft.