What happened
On 6 June 2008, a Fournier RF5B, registration G-SSWV, was conducting a private flight when it experienced an incident during landing at Camphill Airfield in Great Hucklow, Derbyshire. During the final stages of the approach, the aircraft was landing on a heading approximately 30° to the left of the prevailing wind, which was blowing from the west at 10 to 15 knots.
As the pilot performed the flare over the landing area, the aircraft bounced once. During this maneuver, the pilot held the control column almost fully aft, causing the aircraft to drop from a height of approximately 4 to 5 feet onto the runway. This hard impact resulted in damage to the tail wheel assembly, rendering the aircraft unable to taxi.
The investigation
The investigation examined the flight conditions and the pilot's actions during the landing sequence. The pilot considered that the wind may have shifted to a tailwind during the flare. Furthermore, the investigation looked into the pilot's monitoring of airspeed and their familiarity with the prevailing weather conditions at the time of the accident.
Findings
- The primary cause of the incident was a hard landing resulting from a bounce during the flare.
- The pilot held the control column in a nearly full aft position during the flare.
- Insufficient monitoring of the decaying airspeed contributed to the occurrence.
- A lack of currency in the prevailing weather conditions was a contributing factor.
- There were no injuries to the pilot or the passenger on board.