What happened
On 8 April 2017, a Eurostar EV-97, registration G-CGGM, was conducting a private flight in the vicinity of Wycombe Air Park, Buckinghamshire. Due to the closure of the parallel hard runway following a separate incident, the pilot elected to land on the grass runway 24.
During the landing sequence, the pilot experienced an excessive approach speed. This resulted in the aircraft bouncing several times upon contact with the surface. While the pilot managed to taxi the aircraft to its designated parking area on the north side of the airfield, the aircraft exhibited significant vibration and a loss of steering functionality.
The investigation
Following the incident, an examination of the aircraft was conducted to assess the extent of the damage. The investigation focused on the structural integrity of the forward section of the airframe.
Technical inspections identified significant damage to the floor pan, the firewall, and the engine frame. Furthermore, the nose leg and the steering rods were found to be damaged as a result of the impact forces during the bounces.