What happened
On 15 February 2005, a Cessna T188C, registration ZS-LHX, was involved in an accident during an agricultural operation at a private farm aerodrome in the Delmas district. The pilot was preparing for a second flight of the day, carrying 100 litres of water intended for cleaning the aircraft's spraying system.
As the aircraft began its takeoff roll and the tail was lifted, the pilot observed several Egyptian geese positioned on the runway ahead. In an effort to avoid striking the birds, the pilot maneuvered the aircraft to the left. During this maneuver, the left wing struck a maize crop situated alongside the runway. This contact caused the aircraft to yaw uncontrollably to the left, leading it to depart the runway surface. The aircraft eventually came to rest in an inverted position approximately 109 meters from the initial contact with the crop and 8 meters from the left edge of the runway. There were no injuries reported, though the aircraft sustained extensive damage.
The investigation
Investigators examined the circumstances surrounding the takeoff and the aircraft's maintenance history. The weather at the time of the incident was reported as clear with good visibility and a light north-easterly wind of 4 knots. The aircraft had accumulated 8700.0 hours on type, and the pilot held a commercial license with 17000.0 total flying hours. Records indicated that the most recent Mandatory Periodic Inspection (MPI) had been completed on 4 February 2005, with the aircraft having flown an additional 59.2 hours since that inspection.