Aircraft and Pilot Information
The accident involved a Piper PA-28-140 Cherokee, registration G-BCJN, manufactured in 1974. It was powered by a single Lycoming O-320-E3D piston engine. The flight was a solo training sortie with only the student pilot on board. The pilot, aged 18, held a student licence and had accumulated 32 hours of total flying experience, all on type. Of these, less than one hour was spent as pilot-in-command. In the last 90 days, the pilot had flown 15 hours, and in the last 28 days, 15 hours.
Accident Details
At 1339 UTC on 7 September 2015, the aircraft was landing at Cotswold Airport, Gloucestershire. The landing was heavy, causing the aircraft to bounce. During the bounce, the propeller struck the runway surface. Subsequently, the aircraft veered to the right, departed the runway, and came to a stop on the adjacent grass area.
Damage Assessment
The accident resulted in damage to the propeller and engine mounts. The engine was noted as possibly having been shock-loaded during the event. There were no injuries to the pilot.
Information Source
This article is based on the Aircraft Accident Report Form submitted by the pilot and published in the AAIB Bulletin 12/2015 (reference EW/G2015/09/12).