Introduction
On 25 August 2006, at 1225 hours UTC, a Cessna 152 Aerobat (registration G-BRCD) operated on a private flight experienced an accident during landing at White Waltham Airfield, Berkshire. The aircraft was manufactured in 1978 and powered by a single Lycoming O-235-L2C piston engine. The commander, aged 53, held a Private Pilot’s Licence with 189 hours total flying experience, including 1 hour and 15 minutes on type. One passenger was also on board. Both occupants sustained minor injuries and were able to vacate the aircraft. The aircraft suffered extensive damage.
History of the Flight
The pilot had recently joined a syndicate that owned the aircraft and had completed a check flight and one other flight prior to the accident. The flight originated from Shoreham, Sussex, to White Waltham—the pilot’s first visit to the airfield. She spent time studying airfield details, including noise abatement procedures. The flight was uneventful in fine conditions with light winds. An overhead join was flown for grass Runway 25. While on downwind, the pilot’s colleague prompted her to turn finals due to the noise abatement circuit. Although the pilot thought this was early, she commenced a turn onto base leg. On finals, it became clear the aircraft was high on the approach, and the pilot considered a go-around; however, as the aircraft corrected to a normal approach path, she continued.
Accident Sequence
The final stage of the approach was steeper than usual, but the pilot reported the touchdown itself appeared normal. Expecting a bumpy landing surface, the initial rollout was smooth. Approximately six to seven seconds later, the aircraft hit a bump and became airborne again temporarily. The aircraft then landed heavily, apparently on all three wheels together, before bouncing a second time. When the aircraft touched down again, the pilot felt the nose leg dig into the grass surface, and the aircraft pitched forward and came to rest inverted. The nose wheel had detached from the nose leg, causing the leg to dig into the ground. There was no fuel leak or fire. Emergency services attended, but both occupants were adequately restrained by full harnesses and received only minor injuries; they exited through the main door.
Possible Causes
Engineering personnel at the airfield inspected the aircraft and mentioned a possible fatigue fracture in the nose leg. Photographs supplied by the pilot showed the nose leg fork detached from the scissor link assembly on the shock strut. Although the photographs indicated an overload failure in the fork attachment, it was not possible to determine from the photographs whether the failure resulted from overload or was precipitated by fatigue.
The pilot considered that initiating a go-around at the time of the first bounce was not practical because the aircraft had lost too much energy. She also believed that the steep approach was not a factor in the accident, as the landing itself was good. The pilot noted that she had experienced several occasions when the nose gear had landed harder, and considered it likely that fatigue had indeed been a factor in the failure.