What happened
On 11 August 2009, an Isaacs Fury II, registration G-BZAS, was performing a private flight at Little Rissington Airfield in Gloucestershire. During the landing phase of the flight, the pilot lost control of the aircraft. As the aircraft was decelerating on the runway, it departed the paved surface and eventually came to rest in an inverted position. The aircraft sustained substantial damage during the event. The pilot, who was the sole occupant of the aircraft, was able to exit the cockpit without assistance and escaped the accident without any injuries.
The investigation
The investigation was based on the aircraft accident report form provided by the pilot. Investigators examined the circumstances surrounding the loss of control and the pilot's experience with the specific aircraft type. It was noted that while the pilot possessed experience flying other tailwheel aircraft, he had only one hour of flight time on this particular model. Additionally, the investigation looked into the environmental conditions and the pilot's safety equipment usage during the flight.
Findings
Several factors contributed to the accident. The primary cause was the pilot's lack of familiarity with the aircraft type combined with varying wind directions during the landing sequence. Furthermore, the investigation found that the pilot was not wearing his usual flight helmet during this specific operation because the microphone attached to it was unserviceable. Following the incident, the pilot expressed his intention to ensure a helmet is worn for all future flights in open cockpit aircraft.