What happened
On 7 February 2004, a Piper PA-28-181 Cherokee Archer II, registration G-BPOT, was involved in a ground accident at Deanland Airfield in East Sussex. The pilot was performing a ferry flight to return the aircraft to Rochester Airport following the completion of an annual inspection and maintenance.
During the taxi phase, the pilot was using Runway 25. Due to very wet ground conditions that rendered the parallel taxiway unusable, the pilot backtracked along the runway. The weather conditions at the time included a south-west wind of 20 to 25 knots. As the pilot approached the threshold end of the runway, the aircraft was positioned close to the northern perimeter fence to prepare for a right-hand turn. While attempting the turn, the aircraft failed to respond to the steering input and continued moving straight ahead. The port wingtip subsequently struck a fence post, causing the aircraft to slew to the left and collide with the fence. The impact resulted in damage to the propeller, the wingtip, and the leading edge of the wing, though there were no injuries to the pilot.
The investigation
Investigators examined the ground conditions and the aircraft's movement during the taxi. It was noted that the pilot was utilizing a higher power setting than usual to maintain momentum on the saturated surface. The investigation also considered the physical layout of the airfield, specifically the presence of a slope descending toward the runway threshold and the proximity of the perimeter fence.