History of the Flight
A short local flight was planned from Fishburn Airfield, Co Durham. The aircraft took off in an easterly direction on the single grass runway. Weather conditions and visibility were good, with a light southerly wind at 4 to 5 kt. After approximately 30 minutes, the aircraft returned. The pilot assessed the conditions to be the same light southerly wind as when he had departed.
The Approach and Accident
Calling on the radio to rejoin the circuit, the pilot received no reply and thereafter performed radio calls 'blind'. He entered the circuit for Runway 26, considering that, given a light crosswind, this was the best option as it has an upslope of 1.6%. The approach was normal, with the aircraft 'crabbed' slightly to the left to offset the wind drift. On final approach, the pilot selected 20° flap (3/4 of the full flap extension) and reduced the airspeed to 65 kt. At approximately 15 ft above the runway threshold, the aircraft began to lose height rapidly and, as it touched down, began to veer to the left. The pilot applied full power to initiate a go-around but the aircraft did not accelerate and departed the runway to the left. It travelled a distance of approximately 200 m before coming to rest in a hedge which ran parallel to the runway.
Occupants and Damage
Both occupants, who were wearing full shoulder harnesses, were uninjured and vacated the aircraft without difficulty. The nature of damage included damage to the nose landing gear, right main landing gear, propeller, right wing leading edge, and minor damage to the flap and rudder.
Pilot Information
The commander, aged 58, held a Private Pilot’s Licence with 303 hours of flying experience (47 on type), including 20 hours in the last 90 days and 10 hours in the last 28 days.
Probable Cause
The pilot assessed the cause of the accident to be a sudden shift of the wind while on short finals from a light southerly crosswind to an easterly tailwind of 10‑12 kt. This shift in wind direction and strength was confirmed to him by observers on the ground. He also commented that the performance of the aircraft did not enable it to out-climb the runway upslope.