Factual Information
On 13 April 2009, at approximately 07:30 UTC, a Socata TB20 Trinidad GT, registration CS-DEE, MSN 2080, year of manufacture 2001, operated by Academia Aeronáutica de Évora, departed from runway 01 at Évora Aerodrome for a local instructional training flight under VFR conditions. The aircraft was single-pilot, occupied by a 22-year-old female student pilot of Dutch nationality. The student pilot held a valid ATPL(A) student authorization (No. 286/08) and a valid medical certificate dated 27 June 2008 with no restrictions. She had accumulated 87:45 total flight hours (86:05 hours on Socata TB200 Tobago and 01:40 hours on the CS-DEE). In the previous 24 hours she had performed 14 landings.
The aircraft had valid documentation and had complied with the approved maintenance program. The Socata TB20 Trinidad GT is a four-seat, retractable tricycle gear aircraft, powered by a Lycoming IO-540 engine (250 HP) driving a two-blade Hartzell fixed-pitch propeller.
The student had completed 86:05 hours on the Socata TB200 Tobago (fixed gear, 200 HP) and underwent a 1-hour 10-minute adaptation flight on the TB20 before her first solo flight in this type. During that solo, she performed two perfect touch-and-go landings. On the third approach, the airspeed was 80 knots, but the flare was initiated too late, resulting in a hard landing and subsequent bouncing. As the aircraft exhibited successive pitch variations, the student applied takeoff power and went around, noting slight abnormal engine vibrations. She then executed a full-stop landing.
Post-flight inspection by the student and maintenance technicians revealed slight deformation at the tips of the propeller blades due to contact with the runway surface. No other damage to the aircraft occurred. The runway surface showed negligible superficial grooves. The student was uninjured.
Weather conditions were suitable for the flight: wind calm (340/03 kts), visibility above 10 km, clear sky, temperature 19°C, QNH 1020 hPa.
Analysis
The transition from the TB200 to the TB20 was facilitated by the aircraft's similarity, with the main differences being engine power and retractable gear. The student demonstrated confidence and proficiency during the adaptation flight and the first two touch-and-goes. The incident was not related to gear operation; the gear was lowered in time. The flare was executed too late, leading to a bounced landing. The student's pitch control inputs in response to the bounces caused the propeller to contact the runway.
Conclusions
The investigation determined the following causes for the incident:
- Main cause: Propeller contact with the runway surface.
- Secondary cause: Late flare execution, resulting in a bounced landing fomented by pitch variations induced by the student pilot in an attempt to counteract successive bounces of the aircraft on the runway.
Weather conditions were not a contributing factor.