What happened
On 29 September 2014, a Yak-52, registration G-BWSV, was performing a local private flight near North Weald Airfield, Essex. The flight lasted approximately 20 minutes and proceeded without incident until the landing phase. Upon touchdown, the pilot experienced an unusual nose-high attitude. The aircraft subsequently came to a stop on its retracted mainwheels, resulting in damage to the propeller and the rear skid. There were no injuries to the pilot or the single passenger on board.
The investigation
The investigation focused on the configuration of the aircraft's tricycle landing gear during the landing sequence. The Yak-52 utilizes a pneumatic system to operate the brakes, flaps, and mainwheels. To change the gear position, the pilot must move a lever into a specific detent and use a separate knob to release the detents during movement. The cockpit is equipped with three green lights to confirm the gear is down and locked, alongside mechanical indicators located on the nose and wings.
It was established that the pilot did not move the gear lever fully into the down detent and failed to verify the gear position via the cockpit lights or mechanical indicators. Consequently, while the nosewheel partially extended, the mainwheels remained in the retracted position.
Findings
- The primary cause of the accident was the pilot's failure to fully engage the landing gear lever into the down detent.
- The pilot did not cross-check the landing gear position using the provided cockpit lights or mechanical indicators.