What happened
On July 10, 1967, at 20:18 local time, a collision occurred at Bern Airport involving two light aircraft during flight training operations. The first aircraft, a Beechcraft Musketeer HB-EWC, was conducting a series of touch-and-go landings with an instructor and a student pilot. The second aircraft, a Piper Cherokee HB-OWG, was also performing training maneuvers.
As the HB-EWC approached the runway, the air traffic controller updated the landing sequence, placing the HB-EWC behind the HB-OWG. The instructor in the HB-EWC determined the spacing between the two aircraft was insufficient for a safe landing and decided to execute an overshoot. However, during the maneuver, the HB-EWC descended too low and remained on the runway centerline. The nose wheel of the HB-EWC struck the cabin roof of the HB-OWG, which had just landed, and subsequently passed through the propeller of the stationary HB-OWG. The impact caused the nose wheel of the HB-EWC to detach. Despite the collision, the instructor in the HB-EWC maintained control and completed a landing on the paved runway. There were no injuries to the occupants of either aircraft.
The investigation
Investigators examined the flight maneuvers, the sequence of radio communications, and the cockpit actions of both crews. The investigation also looked into the controller's observations from the tower and the technical aspects of the aircraft involved. A notable finding during the investigation was the accidental destruction of the original magnetic radio frequency recordings by the tower controller, though the transcript provided was verified as accurate by both pilots.
Findings
- The primary cause of the collision was a lack of vigilance by the pilot in command of the HB-EWC.
- The instructor in the HB-EWC was focused on monitoring the student pilot's approach speed and failed to notice the decreasing distance to the preceding aircraft.
- The overshoot maneuver was initiated too late due to a delayed reaction from the student pilot and an incomplete throttle application by the instructor, who failed to properly engage the throttle mechanism.
- The HB-EWC descended below a safe altitude while remaining directly on the runway axis.
- The air traffic controller observed the low descent of the HB-EWC and attempted to intervene via radio, but the warning arrived too late to prevent the impact.