What happened
On Sunday, September 27, 1998, at approximately 15:30, a Robin DR 300-108 aircraft, registration F-BTBX, was conducting a flight from Cherbourg. The flight was part of a club activity and included the pilot and two passengers. Upon arriving at the Le Val-Saint-Père aerodrome, the pilot performed two low passes to assess landing conditions and to alert personnel on the runway.
Following these observations, the pilot entered a downwind pattern for runway 31, an unpaved strip with 500 meters of available landing distance. During the final turn at an altitude of approximately 180 feet, with flaps extended, the left wing experienced a slight drop. The pilot attempted to correct the attitude using the rudder but initiated a go-around. During this maneuver, the aircraft entered a stall and struck a hedge approximately 530 meters from the runway threshold. The accident resulted in one serious injury and two minor injuries, and the aircraft was destroyed.
The investigation
The investigation focused on the aircraft's weight and balance, as well as the environmental conditions at the time of the accident. Investigators established that the aircraft had departed with an 8 kg overload. By the time of the landing attempt, the aircraft was carrying an additional 35 kg of excess weight. Furthermore, the investigation confirmed that the pilot had not performed a weight and balance calculation prior to the landing attempt. Meteorological data indicated northwest winds between 12 and 15 knots, with gusts reaching 20 to 25 knots, which could have caused turbulence due to the local terrain.
Findings
- The primary cause of the accident was a misjudgment of the landing conditions.
- The aircraft was significantly overloaded during the final approach.
- The pilot failed to conduct a proper weight and balance assessment for the landing phase.
- Local wind conditions were potentially turbulent.