History of Flight
On 20 October 2019 at approximately 0715Z, a Cessna C402B aircraft, registration ZS-OFP, departed Rand Aerodrome (FAGM) in Gauteng Province on a commercial charter flight under Part 135 of the South African Civil Aviation Regulations. The flight was conducted under instrument flight rules (IFR) by day, with a pilot and five passengers on board. The intended destination was Ant’s Nest private airfield in Limpopo Province.
The pilot, a 29-year-old female commercial pilot with 706.6 total flying hours and 245.3 hours on type, reported that she performed two fly passes over the private farm airfield’s grassy runway to inspect it before joining the circuit for landing on Runway 04. The fly passes did not reveal any concerns. At approximately 0800Z, the aircraft was established on approach to land on Runway 04.
During landing on a grassy and uneven runway surface, the right-hand side main landing gear collapsed. Subsequently, the right-hand side engine propeller and the wing made contact with the ground. The aircraft veered off to the right of Runway 04 and came to rest on the side.
Injuries
None of the occupants were injured during the accident sequence; they disembarked the aircraft unassisted.
Damage to Aircraft
The aircraft sustained damage to the right engine propeller, the right main landing gear door, and the bottom of the right wing. No other damage was reported.
Investigation Findings
According to the owner of Ant’s Nest Lodge, the aircraft landed at an unused private airfield located 8 nautical miles (15 km) south-east of Ant’s Nest Lodge. The operator stated that the GPS coordinates for Ant’s Nest Lodge were obtained from the Airfields Directory and were confirmed with the pre-loaded coordinates on the aircraft. However, a witness reported that the airfield where the aircraft landed had not been used or maintained in more than two years.
The investigation revealed that the aircraft landed on an unused and uneven airstrip. During the landing roll, the right-hand main landing gear entered a ditch and collapsed, causing the aircraft to veer off to the right. The collapse of the gear was due to the sheared off end fitting of the main gear retracting linkage, as determined by the aircraft maintenance engineer who conducted the post-flight inspection.
The aircraft was recovered after the accident, the landing gear was secured, and the aircraft was towed to the hangar at Ant’s Nest private airfield.