What happened
On 5 June 2014, a Piper PA-38-112 Tomahawk, registration G-BODS, was conducting a training flight at Hinton-in-the-Hedges Airfield in Northamptonshire. The flight was being conducted by an instructor who had recently completed a check flight for a teaching position at the school.
During the second circuit of the flight, the student pilot struggled to maintain the required approach speed of 65 knots. As the aircraft crossed the runway threshold for Runway 24, the engine power was reduced to idle. The subsequent flare was performed slightly high, causing the airspeed to drop rapidly. This resulted in a heavy touchdown, after which the aircraft bounced back into the air and began drifting toward the left side of the runway.
In response to the heavy landing, the instructor took control of the aircraft and applied full power to initiate a go-around. Despite using right aileron and rudder inputs and ensuring the carburettor heat was fully in, the aircraft failed to regain sufficient airspeed to climb out of ground effect. The aircraft drifted off the runway and struck a hedge located along the airfield boundary.
The investigation
The investigation examined the flight sequence, the aircraft's mechanical state, and the environmental conditions. The AAIB established that the aircraft was operating in a 10-knot crosswind from the right. The investigation focused on the rapid decay of airspeed during the approach and the subsequent inability to maintain directional control during the aborted landing.
Findings
- The aircraft sustained damage to the propeller, engine mounting frame, nose landing gear leg, and the leading edge of the wing.
- There were no injuries to the two crew members on board.
- The primary cause of the excursion was the inability to gain sufficient airspeed to climb out of ground effect following a heavy landing and subsequent bounce.