What happened
On 27 April 2006, an Ikarus C42 FB80 microllight, registration G-SGEN, was conducting a private flight near Alton, Hampshire. The flight, which included the pilot and one passenger, originated from Wickham to visit a private grass airstrip at West Tisted for the purpose of practicing forced landings.
After completing several successful practice landings using runway 06, the pilot decided to perform a standard approach using runway 24. This decision was made to take advantage of a headwind component. However, during the final stages of the approach, the aircraft entered a stall. As the pilot attempted to flare the aircraft at an altitude of approximately 8 to 10 feet, the loss of airspeed caused the aircraft to drop onto its nosewheel. The impact caused the nosewheel to buckle and the propeller to strike the ground. The aircraft slid approximately 30 metres along the surface before coming to a stop. There were no injuries to the occupants.
The investigation
The investigation examined the flight history, weather conditions, and the pilot's decision-making process. Investigators reviewed the weather briefing obtained by the pilot earlier in the day, which had predicted winds of 030 degrees at 5 knots. At the time of the accident, the actual wind was recorded at 030 degrees with 5 knots, but it was gusting up to 10 knots.
Findings
- The pilot had elected to land on runway 24 to utilize a headwind component.
- The pilot was caught by an unexpected gusting tailwind component during the approach.
- The aircraft's airspeed was insufficient to maintain flight during the flare due to the unexpected tailwind.
- The aircraft sustained damage to the propeller and the nosewheel assembly.