What happened
On February 23, 2004, at 09:40 local time, an Air Force Vinka trainer, registration VN-5, was performing a VFR cross-country flight at Kauhava airport. The aircraft, operating under callsign M-62, arrived from Tampere-Pirkkala with a pilot in command, a second pilot, and one passenger.
Following the landing of a jet trainer, the pilot of VN-5 was cleared to the right base leg of runway 35. In an effort to minimize runway occupancy time and taxi distance, the pilot flew a low-altitude final approach, attempting to land just aft of the runway threshold. At the same time, the air traffic controller intended to change the runway direction immediately following the arrival of M-6 and prepared to raise the runway arrester net.
However, the controller initiated the raising of the net before the Vinka had cleared it. The pilot noticed the moving net and performed an immediate upward evasive maneuver, ultimately landing further down the runway to avoid the obstacle.