History of the Flight
The pilot, a 43-year-old private pilot with a total of 65 flying hours (2 hours on type), departed from Rochester Aerodrome for a local flight routing via Gravesend, Sheerness, and Maidstone before returning. Weather conditions were good, with a light southerly wind, visibility exceeding 10 km, and isolated cumulonimbus clouds with bases generally above 2,500 feet. The flight was uneventful until the pilot rejoined the Rochester circuit downwind for Runway 20R, a grass runway 827 meters long and 32 meters wide.
A Cessna 152 was ahead in the right-hand circuit. The pilot configured the aircraft for landing with 20° of flap on base leg and trimmed for 70 KIAS. On final approach at 600 feet, the PAPI indicators showed two white lights (indicating a low approach path). After the Cessna 152 cleared the runway, the pilot adjusted power to correct the approach path, achieving one red and one white PAPI light. The approach was stabilised with no turbulence. At 300 feet, the pilot selected 30° of flap and closed the throttle to idle at the runway threshold, estimating the aircraft height at 20 to 30 feet above the runway numbers.
During the flare and hold-off, the pilot perceived the nose attitude as correct, but the aircraft touched down heavily, bounced once, and the pilot executed a go-around. He flew a normal circuit and landed without further incident. Upon returning to the flying club, he reported the go-around due to the bounce and was later notified of damage to the nose landing gear.
Damage and Cause
The nose landing gear attachment to the main bulkhead was damaged. The pilot concluded that airspeed was not a factor, as he had maintained 70 KIAS throughout the approach, though the stall warning sounded briefly, likely during the bounce. He attributed the heavy landing to misjudging the flare height, likely influenced by his training at Manston, which has a much larger runway (2,752 meters long and 61 meters wide). The narrower runway at Rochester gave the impression of being higher than actual, leading to a late flare. Consequently, the nose landing gear contacted the runway first with a positive rate of descent, causing the damage.