History of the Flight
On 5 September 2020 at 1040 UTC, a Piper PA-28-151, registration G-CKIO, was conducting a training flight from Nottingham Airport with an instructor and a student on board. The student, who held a lapsed Private Pilot Licence, was at the controls and practising a forced landing over farmland near Woodside Farm, Hockerton, Nottinghamshire.
During the climb away from the practice forced landing, the aircraft's right wing struck the top of a tree. The instructor stated that he had not realised how close the aircraft had become to trees during the procedure. He also noted that the student delayed applying power to climb away when instructed. After the wing strike, the instructor took control and flew the aircraft back to Nottingham Airport without further incident.
Damage
The collision dented a section of the wing's leading edge and damaged the wing tip and strobe light. The nature of damage was described as minor.
Instructor Comments
After the event, the instructor commented that he should have considered earlier in the descent whether the student would be able to land in the selected field. He also stated that he should have intervened more quickly when the student failed to act on instructions to apply full power and climb away.