Incident Details
A Piper PA-28-181 Cherokee Archer II, registration G-OPET, was landing on Runway 12 at Cardiff Airport when it drifted left and departed the paved surface onto the grass. The nose landing gear was damaged during the excursion. Weather conditions were reported as good with variable wind at 3 knots.
Pilot Report
The pilot stated that as he closed the throttle and flared, the aircraft began drifting left. He attempted to correct the drift using rudder input, but the aircraft departed the runway before he could straighten it.
Aftermath
After departing the runway, the pilot was able to taxi the aircraft back onto the paved surface. However, when attempting to vacate the runway at Taxiway G, he found that he could not turn the aircraft left. He shut the engine down, and the airport fire service manually handled the aircraft to the apron.