What happened
On 4 October 1999, a Piper PA34-220T, registered ZS-LWI, was involved in a ground incident at Lanseria Airport. The aircraft, operated by SWJ Beleggings (PTY) LTD, was being used for circuit and landing practice. During the sequence of three landings performed by the pilot, the aircraft bounced on the runway. Following the third attempt, it was discovered that the propellers had made contact with the runway surface, likely occurring during the second landing attempt.
The investigation
SACAA AIID investigators examined the circumstances surrounding the landing sequence and the pilot's recent flight history. The investigation established that the pilot had completed a conversion course on this specific aircraft type only 11 days prior to the incident. While the pilot possessed extensive experience with large jet aircraft, his experience on the Piper PA34-220T was limited to only 3 hours.
Findings
Several factors contributed to the propeller strike. The investigation noted that the Piper PA34-220T has a known tendency to become nose-heavy when operating with low passenger numbers (one or two persons) while carrying nearly full fuel loads. Under these specific loading conditions, the aircraft can lose elevator authority at low speeds, causing the nose to drop.
Crucially, the investigation found that the pilot applied landing techniques more suited to large jet aircraft, specifically by lowering the nose prematurely. In small aircraft, the nose must be maintained in an upward position until much lower speeds are reached to prevent such an occurrence.