What happened
On 17 October 1998, a Grumman AA-5A, registration G-NASH, was conducting a private training flight at Sandown Airport, Isle of Wight. The flight was intended to instruct a student pilot on circuit and landing procedures. During the initial approach, the student pilot initiated a go-around after realizing the aircraft was too high on short finals.
On the subsequent approach, the student allowed the airspeed to drop to 60 kt, below the required 70 kt, while drifting left of the airfield centerline. The instructor took command to stabilize the aircraft's position and speed before returning control to the student. However, the student repeatedly allowed the airspeed to decay. Despite multiple verbal prompts from the instructor regarding the low speed, the student failed to respond to the instructions.
As the aircraft's speed continued to drop, the instructor issued two commands of "I have control," but the student did not relinquish the controls. The stall warning subsequently activated and the right wing dropped. The instructor then physically moved the student's hand from the throttle, applied full power, lowered the nose, and attempted to level the wings. Despite these emergency interventions, the aircraft struck the runway with significant force, resulting in substantial damage to the propeller, landing gear, and right wing. There were no injuries to the two crew members on board.
The investigation
The investigation was based on the aircraft accident report submitted by the pilot. Investigators examined the sequence of events leading to the stall warning and the subsequent heavy landing. The inquiry focused on the breakdown in cockpit communication and the failure of the student pilot to respond to the instructor's commands during the critical phase of the approach.