What happened
On October 15, 2006, a Piper PA-32-200T Seneca II, registration D-GORC, was performing a private flight when it overran the grass runway at the Valdera Airfield in Italy. During the landing phase, the pilot encountered a crosswind gust that caused a momentary loss of alignment with the runway centerline. The aircraft touched down near the middle of the runway with a lateral tilt, initially contacting only the left wheel.
While the pilot managed to correct the aircraft's direction, the braking action proved insufficient to stop the plane before the end of the runway. The aircraft continued along the grass, struck a runway end signal, and crossed a ditch located beyond the runway threshold, finally coming to rest on the opposite bank. The aircraft sustained substantial damage, including broken landing gear legs, deformed propeller blades, and structural damage to the wing spar and flaps. There were no injuries to the pilot.
The investigation
The ANSV investigation revealed that the runway width had been reduced to approximately 18 meters due to ongoing maintenance work on the grass surface. This reduction shifted the effective centerline of the runway, forcing the pilot to adopt a steeper approach angle to avoid flying too low over an adjacent road.
Investigators found that the actual length of the runway was approximately 680 meters, which was about 70-120 meters shorter than the dimensions published in official ENAC documentation. The investigation also noted that the pilot did not retract the flaps immediately after touchdown, which reduced the effectiveness of the braking on the grass surface. Furthermore, the investigation found that the aircraft's landing performance requirements for a grass surface (estimated at 460 meters) could not be met because the touchdown occurred too far down the runway due to the modified approach path.
Findings
- The primary cause was the inadequate execution of the landing maneuver in relation to the crosswind conditions and the limited available runway length.
- The pilot's focus on correcting the directional deviation led to the failure to retract the flaps before applying brakes.
- The effective runway length was shorter than documented, providing less margin for error.
- Ongoing maintenance work on the runway altered the approach trajectory and necessitated a higher descent path.
- Inadequate flight planning regarding the specific landing performance required for a grass surface under modified runway conditions.