History of Flight
The owner of Mooney M20J G-DESS planned to move his aircraft from Old Sarum Aerodrome to a private airstrip at Wadswick. On the morning of 14 October 2004, he and a friend flew from Old Sarum to survey the airstrip. The weather was good, with a forecast westerly surface wind of 10 to 15 kt. After a normal takeoff from Runway 24, the pilot contacted Lyneham Radar for a Flight Information Service. He advised of his intention to make a pass over the airstrip before returning to Old Sarum. At 1421 hrs, Lyneham advised the surface wind as 290°/5 to 10 kt. The pilot had difficulty locating the airstrip but at 1424 hrs reported finals for Runway 27. No further communication occurred.
Accident Sequence
With gear down and full flap selected, at 70 kt indicated airspeed and trimmed, the pilot suddenly realized he was too low on approach. He immediately applied full power. He could not recall details until he became aware of the aircraft in a nose-down attitude, banked left with full power. Control inputs for recovery were applied but the situation appeared unrecoverable. The aircraft struck the ground. The passenger heard a warning horn and noted the nose rising quickly after power application.
Emergency Services
A police helicopter nearby arrived at 1434 hrs. The passenger had extricated himself; the pilot was trapped and badly injured. A medical team was airlifted to the scene, and the pilot was airlifted to hospital at 1607 hrs.
Weather and Airstrip Information
An aftercast indicated surface wind 270°/10 kt, wind at 2,000 ft 300°/15-20 kt, visibility 20-30 km, scattered to broken cumulus and stratocumulus bases 2,000-5,000 ft, occasional cumulonimbus bases 1,500-2,000 ft. The grass strip (Runway 280°/100°M) was 700 m long, 25 m wide, with a hedge at the eastern perimeter and a power line crossing near the threshold (one span buried). Elevation 400 ft.
Recorded Data
GPS and secondary radar data were recovered. The final radar point at 1423:40 showed groundspeed ~90 kt, Mode C altitude 1,700 ft. GPS data continued: at 1424:07, groundspeed 68 kt, track 281°, gradually reducing to ~47 kt at 1425:07. With the aftercast wind, airspeed would be 10-15 kt above groundspeed.
Wreckage Examination
The aircraft came to rest 80 m south of the airstrip, 50 m west of the threshold. Right wing detached, left wing attached. Nose landing gear down; left main gear appeared retracted due to impact loading. Initial ground marks indicated first contact with left wingtip, then nose/propeller, then right wingtip, in a steep nose-down attitude (cartwheel). Propeller chordwise scratching indicated rotation at impact. Right fuel tank ruptured; left tank full. No fire. Controls indicated full power, fully rich mixture, fully fine propeller pitch. Flaps fully extended, landing gear down and locked, pitch trim slightly more nose-up than normal take-off range. A flight in the same type suggested this trim might require push force on approach at 70 kt.
Pilot's Operating Handbook (POH) Excerpts
- Spin warning: up to 2,000 ft may be lost in a one-turn spin recovery; low-altitude stalls are critical.
- Caution during approach: nose-up pitch force increases when power reduced to idle and flaps extended; timely trimming needed.
- Caution during go-around: nose-down pitch force increases when Maximum Continuous Power applied and flaps retracted.
- Final approach speed with full flap: 71 kt.
- Go-around initial speed: 65 kt; retract flaps once climb established.
- Stall speed (gear down, full flap, zero bank): about 52 kt at assessed weight of 2,500 lb.
- Stall warning horn activates 4-8 kt before stall.
Analysis
The pilot had made reasonable plans and was aware of relevant safety guidance. The aircraft was in landing configuration when the pilot initiated a go-around. The aircraft stalled, accompanied by a left wing drop, and entered an incipient spin from which recovery was not achieved before ground impact.