What happened
On December 14, 2015, a Tecnam P2002 JF, registration F-HAJF, was conducting a private flight at the Sézanne Saint-Rémy airfield. The pilot departed from the airfield toward Épernay at approximately 15:30. Due to concerns regarding deteriorating weather conditions for the return leg, the pilot decided to perform circuit patterns at the airfield instead of continuing the flight.
After completing several circuits, including two touch-and-go landings, the pilot landed on runway 06L. During the subsequent taxiing phase, the pilot heard an unusual noise and noticed the aircraft tilting to the left. The aircraft veered off the left side of the runway and came to a stop near a taxiway parallel to the runway. The aircraft sustained heavy damage.
The investigation
The investigation focused on the structural integrity of the landing gear assembly. The left main gear is attached to the fuselage by three screws. Upon examination, investigators found that the primary attachment screw had failed. One of the two remaining screws was also found to be deformed, a condition likely resulting from the failure of the primary screw.
Findings
Analysis of the fracture surface of the primary attachment screw revealed that the failure was caused by an overload. While the investigators confirmed the mechanical failure of the hardware, the specific origin of the overload—whether caused by an external impact, a landing maneuver, or another force—could not be determined from the available evidence.