What happened
On 27 April 2011, a Grob G115D2, registration G-BVHF, was conducting a training flight at Dundee Airport, Scotland. The flight involved a student pilot and an instructor performing a series of touch-and-go landings. During the initial landings, the instructor noted some nosewheel shimmying and advised the student to avoid excessive rudder pedal use to compensate for the vibration, suggesting instead that the student apply backward pressure on the control column to reduce the load on the nosewheel.
During the third landing attempt, the aircraft touched down firmly on both the main and nosewheels. At the moment the nosewheel made contact with the runway, the aircraft experienced severe shimmying. As the nosewheel was lowered, the nose landing gear collapsed.
The investigation
The investigation focused on the mechanical failure of the landing gear and the circumstances of the touchdown. The aircraft sustained damage to the propeller and the nose leg, and the engine suffered a shock-load. Maintenance records and inspections were reviewed to determine the condition of the shimmy damper and the landing gear assembly.
Findings
- The nose landing gear collapsed due to the failure of the lower attachment on the shock strut.
- The instructor's assessment suggested the collapse was caused by the aircraft landing heavily on the nosewheel.
- The nosewheel shimmy damper was found to be in a serviceable condition, and its attachment brackets remained intact.