What happened
On 07 September 2003, a PIPER PA-28-180, registered ZS-FYS, was involved in an accident at Port Alfred Aerodrome. The flight, which was being conducted for the purpose of building flight hours toward a commercial license, departed from the aerodrome for the Port Alfred General Flying Area. The aircraft was carrying a pilot and one passenger, who was also a pilot.
During the return to the aerodrome, the pilot attempted to land on Runway 07 using full flaps. During the landing roll, the aircraft's nose wheel made contact with the runway prematurely, leading to a wheelbarrow effect. This caused the pilot to lose directional control, resulting in the aircraft veering off the left side of the runway. The impact caused the nose undercarriage to collapse. There were no injuries to the two occupants.
The investigation
SACAA AIID investigators examined the circumstances surrounding the landing and the pilot's experience. At the time of the accident, the pilot had a total of 58.0 flying hours, with only 1.7 hours specifically on this aircraft type. The aircraft's last maintenance inspection (MPI) had been completed on 04 September 2003, just 13 hours prior to the occurrence.
Findings
- The primary cause of the accident was the use of incorrect landing technique by the pilot.
- The pilot's limited experience on the specific aircraft type contributed to the loss of control.
- The landing configuration (full flaps) and the subsequent nose wheel contact initiated the wheelbarrow effect that led to the runway excursion.