Accident Summary
On Tuesday, 25 June 1968, a student pilot was conducting solo training flights at Spreitenbach airfield in a Piper J3C aircraft, registration HB-OEN. The aircraft was owned and operated by the Motorfluggruppe Zürich of the Aero-Club of Switzerland. During his second solo landing, the student approached too low, causing the wheels to contact the ground just before the runway threshold. The pilot was uninjured, but the aircraft's landing gear and left gear attachment to the fuselage were damaged, amounting to approximately 15% of the aircraft's market value.
Aircraft and Pilot Information
The Piper J3C (serial number 11842, built in 1944) is a single-engine, high-wing cabin monoplane with fixed tailwheel landing gear, designed for training. It was in airworthy condition with weight and balance within limits. The student pilot, born in 1945, held a valid learner's permit for powered and glider aircraft, issued on 10 April 1968. He had accumulated 18 hours and 4 minutes total flight time with 168 landings, including 2 hours 17 minutes and 26 landings solo, all on the accident aircraft type. His training began on 19 April 1968 at Spreitenbach. The instructor reported no issues with the student's flying qualifications.
Accident Sequence
On the day of the accident, the student flew from Kloten to Spreitenbach with his instructor. After one dual-instruction landing and two dual power-off landings that were satisfactory, the student took off alone to practice power-off landings. His first solo landing was too high: he held the aircraft 8–10 meters above the ground for about 150 meters before setting down. The instructor advised him to come down lower earlier on the next approach.
During the second approach, the aircraft was already low before the base turn, barely clearing a power line about 250 meters before the runway. After crossing the line, the student continued descending to 1–2 meters above ground in a nose-high attitude. From the landing T, the landing gear was partially obscured behind a cornfield. The aircraft continued in this low-level attitude for about 180 meters until the wheels struck the earthen bank of a stream that runs along the left side of the airfield. The impact lifted the aircraft slightly; it then yawed 90 degrees left and came to a stop approximately 20 meters past the runway start and 20 meters from the left boundary. The accident occurred at 1907 hours.
Discussion
The aircraft had no technical defects, and weather conditions (light east wind, slight clouds) did not contribute. The student was adequately trained for such exercises and familiar with the airfield. The instructor's criticism of the first landing and advice to come lower led the student to overcorrect, resulting in an excessively low approach approximately 200 meters before the field boundary. At heights of 1–2 meters in a nose-high, powered-off glide, ground contact became almost inevitable given the student's limited experience.