What happened
On 11 April 2014, a student pilot was conducting solo training circuits at Beverley (Linley Hill) Aerodrome in Yorkshire. The weather was clear with good visibility and a 9-10 kt wind acting directly down the runway. After successfully completing an initial set of solo circuits, the pilot began a second set of exercises. During the approach for the first circuit of this second set, the pilot flared the Cessna 152, registration G-BIDH, higher than usual. This resulted in the aircraft bouncing upon touchdown. Following the bounce, the nose of the aircraft dropped, leading to the collapse of the nose landing gear upon impact with the ground. The aircraft came to rest on the underside of the engine cowling.
There were no injuries to the pilot, who vacated the aircraft without incident. The impact caused significant damage to the airframe, including the propeller tips, engine frame, firewall, and cowling, as well as bending the nose landing gear.
The investigation
The AAIB investigation examined the flight sequence and the pilot's actions following the bounce. It was noted that the pilot had contacted the instructor via radio to confirm the appropriate flap setting before the approach, receiving advice to use either 20 or 30 degrees based on personal judgment. The investigation established that the pilot had actually set the flaps to 30 degrees, though he believed they were at 20 degrees.
Further examination of the pilot's actions revealed that after the initial bounce, the pilot did not execute a go-around as trained. Instead, the pilot attempted to force the aircraft into a landing by lowering the nose, which resulted in an excessive rate of descent onto the nose gear.