What happened
On 07 July 2016, a Piper PA-3-200, registration ZS-ISD, was conducting a training flight from Port Alfred Airport to East London Airport. The flight, operated by 43 Air School, included an instructor and two student pilots. The crew intended to perform circuits at East London Airport.
During the final approach for a touch-and-go landing on Runway 11, the crew selected the landing gear down. The cockpit indicators showed three green lights, confirming the gear was down and locked. However, upon touchdown at approximately 1417Z, the nose landing gear collapsed unexpectedly. The nose section of the aircraft struck the runway, causing the aircraft to skid erratically before coming to a halt. Aerodrome rescue and fire fighting services responded immediately, but the occupants evacuated the aircraft without any 0 injuries.
The investigation
An investigation by the SACAA AIID examined the aircraft's maintenance history and the circumstances of the landing. The aircraft had been found in a serviceable condition during its pre-flight inspection, with all weight and fuel parameters within limits.
An authorized maintenance organization (AMO) inspected the aircraft to identify the source of the failure. The inspection revealed that the aircraft had likely been subjected to an unreported hard landing during a prior training session, which had caused damage to certain undercarriage components. The investigation established that a subsequent hard landing during the flight in question likely acted as the final catalyst, leading to the ultimate failure of these already compromised parts.
Findings
- The primary cause of the collapse was a hard landing that resulted in the failure of the nose gear up-lock mechanism.
- The structural integrity of the undercarriage had been previously compromised by an unreported hard landing.
- The secondary hard landing during the subject flight caused the weakened components to fail completely.