What happened
On 25 June 2016, a Piper PA-28-161 Cherokee Warrior II, registration G-SVEA, was conducting a training flight when it veered off the runway during takeoff. The flight was being conducted with a student pilot in control. After the takeoff roll commenced on Runway 33 with 10 degrees of flaps, the aircraft began to drift toward the left edge of the grass strip, which is bordered by a line of trees.
As the aircraft passed over a small rise halfway down the runway, the instructor took control of the aircraft to prevent it from hitting the trees. However, the aircraft became airborne prematurely, and the left wing began making contact with tree branches. Despite the instructor applying right rudder and a㭜aileron to steer the plane away, the contact continued. A significant impact with the branches caused the aircraft to yaw violently to the left, rotating 180 degrees while in level flight. The aircraft then exited the tree line traveling backward and came to rest nose-first on the A40 trunk road between Abergavenny and Raglan. The cabin of the aircraft landed in the southeast-bound lane, while the tail section remained in the central reservation. There were 3 minor injuries among the two crew members and one passenger.
The investigation
The investigation examined the sequence of the takeoff roll and the aircraft's interaction with the airfield environment. Investigators looked at the proximity of the tree line to the runway edge and the pilot's attempts to recover the aircraft. The investigation established that the aircraft's path was interrupted by the trees, leading to a sudden rotation. The investigation also noted that no other vehicles were involved in the collision on the A40.