What happened
On 7 July 2010, a private flight arriving at Kitty Hawk Aerodrome resulted in an aircraft incident involving a RV-7A registration ZU-JAD. The pilot, flying solo, departed from Springs Aerodrome and approached Kitty Hawk to land. Upon arrival, the pilot observed that while runway 19 was experiencing a 15-knot westerly crosswind, the windsock for runway 01 indicated relatively calm conditions. Consequently, the pilot elected to land on runway 01.
During the short final approach, the pilot configured the aircraft with full flaps at an indicated airspeed of 80 mph. As the aircraft touched down on the slight upslope of the asphalt runway, it unexpectedly bounced twice. In the attempt to manage the aircraft, the pilot closed the throttle, but the nose gear struck the runway surface before the main landing gear. This impact caused the nose gear strut to collapse and resulted in the propeller tips striking the ground.
The investigation
An investigation by the SACAA AIID established that the aircraft was well-maintained, having undergone its last annual inspection only 0.6 hours prior to the incident. The aircraft was in a serviceable condition, and no mechanical malfunctions were identified as a cause for the gear failure. The investigation also confirmed that the pilot held a valid private pilot's licence and medical certificate, and the weather conditions were generally clear (CAVOK) with a temperature of 25°C.
Findings
- The primary cause of the incident was that the aircraft was not in the correct attitude upon landing, which triggered the successive bounces.
- The sequence of the bounce led to the nose gear making contact with the runway surface before the main gear, causing the structural collapse of the strut.
- A contributing factor may have been the presence of an updraft or a crosswind during the landing phase.
- The aircraft sustained damage specifically to the propeller tips and the nose gear.