What happened
On 7 February 1998, a Morane Saul andnier Rallye 235E, registration G-BGMT, was conducting a private pleasure flight from a landing strip near Dinton, Staffordshire, to Tatenhill Airfield in Leicestershire. The flight involved two occupants and proceeded without incident until the landing phase.
During the approach to Runway 26, the pilot performed a standard landing, flaring at 60 kt and touching down on the main wheels at approximately 50 kt. Following touchdown, the pilot maintained back pressure on the control column to hold the nose off the ground while applying light braking. As the nosewheel made contact with the runway, intense vibrations began at the front of the aircraft. These vibrations escalated rapidly in severity, leading to the total detachment of the nosewheel assembly. The aircraft's nose subsequently struck the runway surface, resulting in damage to the propeller, engine, cowling, and nose landing gear. The aircraft stopped roughly 120 metres from the runway threshold, having lost the nosewheel approximately 50 metres prior. There were no injuries to the two crew members.
The investigation
The AAIB investigation examined the mechanical failure of the landing gear and the circumstances surrounding the vibration. The maintenance organisation responsible for the aircraft provided technical details regarding the nosewheel assembly. It was noted that the aircraft was equipped with a self-castoring nosewheel featuring a friction-type anti-shimmy device. The investigation established that the sudden detachment was the result of a severe nosewheel shimmy.
Findings
- The primary cause of the accident was a violent nosewheel shimmy that led to the structural failure and detachment of the nosewheel assembly.
- Prior to this event, there had been at least one recorded instance of nosewheel shimmy on the aircraft, though the previous vibrations were of a much lower amplitude.
- The aircraft sustained significant damage to the engine, propeller, and nose cowlings due to the nose striking the ground.