Accident Details
On 21 March 2009 at 1420 UTC, a Piper PA-28-181 Cherokee Archer II, registration G-TSGJ, experienced an accident during landing at Bourne Park, near Andover, Hampshire. The aircraft was manufactured in 1980 and powered by one Lycoming O-360-A4M piston engine. The flight was private, with one pilot and three passengers on board. No injuries were sustained. The aircraft sustained damage including a propeller strike, engine shock-loading, and nosewheel damage.
Flight History
The pilot held a Private Pilot's Licence and was 68 years old, with 360 hours total flying experience, of which 260 hours were on type. He had flown 4 hours in the last 90 days and 4 hours in the last 28 days. Before departure, the pilot telephoned the helicopter maintenance facility at Bourne Park, as required by Pooley's flight guide, but did not receive a briefing on the runway, believing in hindsight that they thought he was arriving by helicopter. The flight to Bourne Park was uneventful.
Accident Sequence
Overhead Bourne Park, the windsock indicated a wind of approximately 330° at 4-6 kt. The pilot established a long approach to Runway 29 with a track slightly right of the centreline to compensate for crosswind. He planned to touch down as slowly and early as possible because the aircraft was relatively heavy with four occupants and the grass strip had a negative gradient. He flew the final approach at 65 kt, 15 kt above stall speed, noting that there were no runway identifying numbers to serve as a touchdown aiming point. After crossing a one-metre-high wire fence with white marker boards located approximately 85 metres from the threshold, he flared the aircraft, during which the stall warner sounded. Following touchdown, the nosewheel "slammed down." The aircraft veered 30 degrees to the left and continued for approximately 100 metres before the propeller struck the ground as it came to a halt, partially off the grass strip. All occupants vacated the aircraft uninjured.
Accident Site
Photographs of the accident site showed a recent witness mark on the fence in the undershoot that corresponded with a witness mark on the underside of the aircraft fuselage. The right main wheel and the nosewheel touched down in the deeply rutted undershoot of Runway 29, approximately 75 metres from the threshold and 9 metres inside the fence. The aircraft then bounced about 100 metres. On the subsequent landing, the nosewheel bent backwards, probably as a result of the initial landing and the rough ground, causing the propeller to strike the ground.
Discussion
The pilot considered that the accident was caused by his misjudgement of the runway touchdown point. He believed this occurred because the undershoot was indistinguishable from the grass strip, as the grass had not been mown over the winter months.
Safety Action
As a result of this accident, the maintenance organisations have nominated a limited number of personnel who can give landing permission over the telephone. They also have a written brief that will be read to all pilots requesting permission to land there.