Incident
On 7 August 2005 at 1330 UTC, a privately operated Avions Pierre Robin DR400-180R, registration D-EKSI, was engaged in aerotow operations at Lasham Airfield, Hampshire. The aircraft was conducting its second glider launch after refueling. Shortly after takeoff, at approximately 30 ft above ground level, the pilot sensed the glider release. Checking the mirror, she observed smoke and simultaneously heard a radio call reporting the aircraft was on fire.
Pilot Actions
The pilot immediately closed the throttle and performed a straight-ahead landing on the grass strip north of the paved runway. During the latter part of the landing, she completed the immediate actions for an engine fire. As the aircraft decelerated, she steered back onto the hard runway and applied maximum braking, but was unable to stop before running off the end of the paved surface. The aircraft came to rest approximately 20 m into the grass overshoot area for Runway 27. After confirming that the ignition, fuel, and electrical systems were off, the pilot vacated the aircraft in the normal manner. By that time, smoke was entering the cockpit and flames were visible outside. The pilot briefly looked for a fire extinguisher, but the fire was already burning fiercely, and she decided it was safer to evacuate the area. Because the fire posed no threat to life, no attempt was made to extinguish it subsequently, and the aircraft was totally destroyed.
Witness Observations
The tug master witnessed the incident and reported seeing smoke emanating from beneath the engine cowl as the aircraft began its take-off roll. Flames were visible by the time the aircraft reached a height of approximately 40 ft. He confirmed that the pilot was informed of the fire by radio at about the time the glider released, and his account of the subsequent events matched the pilot's description. He noted that immediately after the aircraft came to rest, flames were visible in the forward bulkhead area, and the fire quickly took hold. The smoke was described as blue/white in color and very dense, consistent, in his opinion, with oil, possibly from the oil cooler, spraying onto the exhaust system.
Aftermath
The severity of the fire was such that little remained of the wooden aircraft other than the landing gear and basic engine block. Consequently, no meaningful investigation was possible to establish the cause of the fire.