Incident Overview
A single-pilot aircraft was en route from Sheffield City Airport to its home base in Nottingham. The pilot joined the traffic zone at Burton Joyce, an unofficial but widely used Visual Reporting Point, at an altitude of approximately 1,000 feet. Weather conditions were fine with good visibility.
Events Leading to Departure from Normal Flight
During the flight, the pilot took the opportunity to view a house belonging to the aircraft's co-owner, located near Burton Joyce. While orbiting the house, the pilot felt a moderate 'bumping' sensation, which he attributed to thermal activity rather than pre-stall buffet. Shortly after, the left wing dropped suddenly and the aircraft rolled through the vertical.
Pilot Actions and Descent
The pilot applied corrective rudder and moved the control column forward, which rolled the aircraft erect. However, he was unable to arrest the rate of descent because the engines did not appear to be developing full power. He therefore elected to carry out a forced landing with the landing gear retracted.
Forced Landing and Ground Impact
On approaching the field, the aircraft struck a telegraph pole, yawed to the left, and landed with a very high rate of descent before coming to a halt after a short ground slide. The pilot was unable to evacuate the aircraft because of his injuries but was rescued by local people who quickly arrived at the scene. There was no fire.
Pilot Statement
The pilot stated that at the time the aircraft departed from normal flight, he was flying at about 100 knots with 60 degrees of bank. The basic stalling speed of the aircraft in the configuration at the time was about 70 knots. Application of the correction for load factor in the turn would have given a stalling speed of 100 knots.
Eyewitness Accounts
The majority of eyewitnesses stated that the aircraft was very low at the point at which it departed from normal flight, probably in the region of 300 feet above ground level.