Cessna C182J Nose Gear Collapse at Chitabe Aerodrome (ZS-EOE)

Incident Overview and Aircraft Details On 28 April 2007, a Cessna C182J with registration ZS-EOE was involved in an accident at Chitabe Aerodrome in Botswana. The aircraft was operating a private flight from Maun Aerodrome (FBMN) to Chitabe Aerodrome. The pilot-in-command was 59 years old and held a private licence, with 500 total flying hours and 17 hours on type. The aircraft carried one pilot and one passenger. ## Sequence of Events After landing successfully at Chitabe Aerodrome, the pilot taxied off runway 12 toward the parking area. The pilot noted that the available parking space was insufficient for the seven aircraft that had landed. Consequently, the pilot decided to taxi the aircraft to a smaller adjacent area approximately 30 metres down the runway. While crossing a narrow, grassy strip about 2 metres wide between the parking area and the runway, the nose gear collapsed. The impact caused the propeller to strike the ground, which immediately stopped the engine. Upon investigation, the pilot found that the nose wheel had entered a dry mud hole, leading to the gear collapse. ## Damage and Injuries Neither the pilot nor the passenger was injured. The aircraft sustained damage to the propeller and nose gear, along with scratches on the lower portion of the forward fuselage. The last mandatory periodic inspection was certified on 13 April 2007 at 3,140.85 airframe hours since new, and the aircraft had accumulated an additional 87.7 hours since that inspection. ## Probable Cause The probable cause was to be determined by the State of Occurrence in accordance with ICAO Annex 13, Chapter 5, Paragraph 5.1.