What happened
On 9 November 2009, a student pilot was conducting a solo cross-country qualifying flight, following a route from Caernarfon to Haverfordwest via Aberporth. While passing the town of Barmouth, the aircraft encountered a lowering cloudbase, which reduced visibility to the point that the pilot could no longer identify the next checkpoint at Criccieth or the Nebo mast landmark.
In response to the deteriorating conditions, the pilot declared a PAN emergency, set the transponder to 7700, and notified Air Traffic Control of her intention to perform a precautionary landing at the disused Llanbedr Airport.
Upon approaching Runway 35 at Llanbedr, the aircraft experienced an initial bounce during the landing roll. The pilot applied the brakes, but the Piper PA-28-161 Cherokee Warrior III, registration G-CEMD, veered to the right and left the runway surface. The aircraft entered soft ground approximately 10 metres from the runway edge, causing it to tip onto its nose before coming to a halt. The pilot, who was uninjured, shut down the engine and exited the cabin safely.
The investigation
The investigation was based on the aircraft accident report form provided by the pilot. The inspection of the aircraft revealed damage to the propeller, the engine mount, and the nose landing gear frame, which had been bent. Additionally, the left wing outer leading edge skin and the wing tip sustained damage. The engine was found to have been shock-loaded during the nose-over event.
Findings
- The pilot encountered visibility issues due to a lowering cloudbase during the flight.
- The aircraft departed the runway surface after an initial bounce and subsequent veering to the right.
- The impact with soft ground caused the aircraft to tip onto its nose, resulting in structural damage to the landing gear and engine components.