What happened
On 31 March 2000, a Europa XS, registration G-ROOV, was conducting a circuit training flight at Shobdon Aerodrome, Herefordshire. The flight was part of a conversion training session under the Popular Flying Association Coaching Scheme, with the pilot undergoing training to gain experience on the type. The weather at the time was dry with good visibility and light winds.
During the fourth landing of a planned one-hour training session, the aircraft touched down on Runway 27. Following the touchdown, the left wing dropped and made contact with the asphalt runway surface. In an attempt to correct the resulting leftward swing, the pilot applied full right rudder, which caused the aircraft to swing back toward the center of the runway. As the pilot applied braking, the aircraft continued to swing and eventually tipped forward onto its nose. This motion resulted in minor damage to the propeller blades and the wing.
The investigation
The investigation examined the sequence of events and the mechanical state of the aircraft. The coaching pilot, who had been monitoring the student's approach with hands free from the controls, noted that while the touchdown appeared successful, a lapse in concentration led to a failure to counteract the initial swing.
The student pilot suggested that the left outrigger might have temporarily unlocked, potentially due to an incorrect rigging of the mechanism, which could have allowed the wing to strike the ground. Upon inspection, the left outrigger was found to be locked, though it showed signs of being bent backwards. It was also noted that the aircraft had been involved in a similar incident involving the same pilot on 16 March, though that event resulted only in minor paint damage.
Findings
- The primary cause of the wing strike was the failure to stop the initial swing following touchdown.
- The aircraft's landing gear configuration, a single mainwheel with outriggers, contributed to the handling difficulty.
- A potential misrigging of the left outrigger mechanism may have contributed to the wing dropping, though this was not definitively proven.