History of the Flight
On 27 October 2008 at 1409 UTC, a student pilot undertook his second solo flight at Old Sarum Airfield, Wiltshire, to practice circuits. He had previously completed a dual sortie with his instructor, who was satisfied with his abilities. After positioning the aircraft into wind, the student opened the throttle rapidly. The aircraft swung violently to the left. The pilot admitted he was late in applying corrective right rudder and considered he should have aborted the takeoff. Instead, he continued to accelerate, hoping to become airborne while still heading roughly along the grass runway. During this roll, he inadvertently applied pressure on the left brake pedal, causing the aircraft to turn sharply left towards an agricultural roller situated in an adjacent field. The left wheel struck a runway marker before the aircraft ran through the perimeter fence, struck the roller with the left wingtip, and came to rest.
Aircraft and Pilot Information
The aircraft was an Aero AT-3 R100, registration G-DPEP, manufactured in 2007 and powered by one Rotax 912-S piston engine. The commander, aged 61, held a student pilot licence with a total flying experience of 33 hours, all on type, including 10 hours in the last 90 days and 10 hours in the last 28 days. No passengers were on board, and the pilot sustained no injuries.
Damage
The accident resulted in damage to the leading edges of both wings and the loss of one propeller blade.
Probable Cause
The pilot assessed the causes of the accident as his application of full throttle too rapidly at the start of the takeoff run and his inadvertent application of left brake.