What happened
On Saturday, March 20, 1999, at 15:15, a Piper PA 28 R 200 (registration F-BTQJ) was conducting a private flight from Villefranche Tarare to Paray-le-Monial. Upon approaching the airfield, the pilot observed the windsock and elected to land on runway 13, which is an unpaved strip measuring 600 by 100 meters.
During the landing roll, after traveling approximately 200 meters, the aircraft experienced a sudden and violent veer to the left. This maneuver caused the aircraft to depart the runway surface, eventually coming to a halt about 15 meters from the edge of the strip. The impact resulted in damage to the nose gear, propeller, engine cowling, wings, and elevator. There were two persons on board (the pilot and one passenger), and both survived the incident without injury.
The investigation
The investigation focused on the environmental conditions and the state of the landing surface. At the time of the accident, meteorological observations indicated a wind from 020° to 030° at 8 to 12 knots, with gusts reaching 18 knots. The visibility was 10 km with scattered clouds at 3,000 and 3,600 feet.
Investigators noted that the pilot had previously postponed a flight scheduled for the prior week because the runway was deemed too wet. On the day of the accident, the unpaved surface was still characterized as "soft."
Findings
The investigation established that the primary cause of the runway excursion was the insufficient compensation for crosswind components and the soft condition of the runway surface.