What happened
On Wednesday, February 7, 2001, a Cessna 182B Skylane, registered F-BJEE, was performing a private flight from Toulouse Lasbordes to AD Gray. Upon arriving at the airfield, the pilot attempted an initial landing but subsequently entered a new circuit for runway 26. During the second approach, the aircraft touched down 445 meters from the runway threshold, resulting in a bounce.
Following the bounce, the pilot attempted to correct the aircraft's attitude, but the plane struck the ground with a nose-down pitch of approximately 10 to 20 degrees. This impact caused the nose gear to collapse. The aircraft then slid for approximately 70 meters before coming to a stop on the adjacent grass area. There were no fatalities among the two occupants, though the pilot sustained injuries.
The investigation
The investigation focused on the flight parameters during the final approach and the environmental conditions at the time of the accident. Investigators noted that the pilot was landing at this aerodrome for the first time and was not accustomed to operating on narrow runways.
Data from the flight indicated that at 300 feet on final approach, the aircraft was traveling at 8 an 85-knot airspeed, which exceeded the 75-knot recommended speed specified in the flight manual for that configuration. Meteorological observations at the site recorded a wind from 220° at 17 knots, with gusts up to 27 knots. The crosswind component was estimated at 10 knots with gusts of 16 knots, while the aircraft's demonstrated maximum crosswind limit is 15 knots.
Findings
- The primary cause of the accident was an unstabilized final approach, characterized by an approach speed exceeding the manufacturer's recommended limits.
- The pilot's lack of familiarity with the narrow runway at AD Gray contributed to the difficulty of the landing.
- The aircraft's nose gear and propeller sustained damage during the impact.