Incident History
On 7 June 2006 at 1325 UTC, a Cessna 152, registration G-BNRK, was concluding a private navigation exercise as part of a student pilot's training for a Private Pilot's Licence. The flight had included a normal landing at Kemble Airfield and was otherwise uneventful. Weather conditions at Blackbushe Airport in Surrey were good, with CAVOK conditions, a light and variable surface wind, and a temperature of +24°C.
The pilot, aged 33 with 32 total flying hours (all on type, including 17 hours in the last 90 days and 7 hours in the last 28 days), joined the left-hand circuit for Runway 25. He selected two stages of flap for landing. As he approached the runway threshold, he noted the airspeed was 70–75 kt, higher than the normal 65 kt approach speed. The flare was insufficient to prevent a heavy touchdown, and the aircraft bounced. The pilot held the control column central; as the aircraft descended, he moved the column aft, but the aircraft again landed heavily and bounced a second time, reaching an estimated height of about 15 ft. After the second bounce, the aircraft touched down heavily again and remained on the runway while oscillating in yaw several times. The pilot applied wheel brakes and felt a vibration through the rudder pedals. He informed ATC of the heavy landing and requested a runway inspection.
Damage and Aftermath
After vacating the runway, the pilot shut down the aircraft and conducted an external inspection. He found that the nose wheel tyre had detached from its wheel rim and several pieces of the wheel had broken off. The aircraft was subsequently pushed to the parking area. The airfield Rescue and Fire Fighting Service recovered several wheel fragments from the runway during their inspection. No injuries were reported.
Pilot's Analysis
The pilot considered that the faster-than-normal threshold speed and insufficient flare caused the initial bounce. He noted that at that point he should have initiated a go-around without delay. Not doing so allowed the second bounce before the final heavy touchdown and landing roll. He could not identify the exact point at which the nose wheel damage occurred.