What happened
On 24 May 2022, a Savannah VG aircraft, registration ZU-ICK, departed from Kroon Airfield in Pretoria North for a private flight. The flight, operated under Part 94 regulations, was intended to be a local circuit with the aircraft returning to the same airfield. Weather conditions were clear with visual meteorological conditions prevailing.
After an initial climb and a successful touch-and-go landing, the pilot performed a second circuit. During the landing roll on Runway 29, the pilot observed a flock of guineafowl flying at a low altitude, approaching the aircraft's path from the right. To prevent a mid-air collision with the birds, the pilot executed an intentional maneuver using the left rudder pedal to ground-loop the aircraft.
The investigation
The investigation examined the sequence of events following the maneuver. It was established that the pilot had performed a pre-flight inspection with no abnormalities noted. The aircraft was operating with 60 litres of Avgas 100LL. The investigation confirmed that the aircraft's nose gear strut failed during the ground loop, causing the propeller to strike the runway surface. The aircraft eventually came to rest in a tail-high position, balanced on its left wing and nose.
Findings
- The substantial damage to the aircraft was a direct result of the pilot's decision to intentionally ground-loop the aircraft to avoid a collision with a flock of birds.
- The aircraft sustained damage to the nose gear strut and the propeller.
- There were 0 fatalities and no injuries to the two occupants on board.