What happened
On 15 November 2023, a private flight involving a pilot and one passenger departed from Grantham private airfield in the Western Cape. The mission was to fly over the eastern portion of the Karoo National Park to assist in locating a rhinoceros. The flight was conducted under visual meteorological conditions in a Bantam B22J microlight, registration ZU-FMV.
During the flight, a park ranger requested the aircraft fly north of Rietvlei to identify a sedated rhino. Upon reaching the area, the pilot identified a previously used landing zone. After performing three overhead passes to evaluate the terrain, the pilot attempted a landing on the rocky surface. During the landing roll, the aircraft's nose gear failed, causing the microlight to nose over and come to rest in an inverted position. Although there were no fatalities and no injuries to the occupants, the aircraft sustained substantial damage. Later that day, a thunderstorm and strong winds moved the wreckage approximately 200 meters from its initial position, causing additional damage.
The investigation
SACAA AIID investigators confirmed that the pilot was properly licensed and medically fit for the flight. The aircraft, ZU-FMV, was airworthy with a valid authority to fly and had undergone its last mandatory periodic inspection earlier that year. The investigation focused on the landing conditions and the mechanical failure of the landing gear during the touchdown and roll-out phase on the uneven terrain.