Accident Overview
On 19 August 2006, at approximately 10:07 local time, a Piper PA-28RT-201 Arrow IV, registered HB-PEO, operated by Motorfluggruppe Langenthal, was conducting a navigation flight from Langenthal Airfield to St. Gallen. On board were a pilot, a flight instructor, and a passenger. The aircraft was taking off from grass runway 05.
Sequence of Events
During the takeoff roll, shortly before reaching rotation speed, the pilot partially reduced engine power. The flight instructor intervened and set full power again. The aircraft then became airborne, but the pilot raised the nose excessively, prompting the instructor to take over the controls and correct the attitude. At that moment, the pilot reduced engine power completely to idle, causing the aircraft to contact the runway again. The instructor then applied full power once more and attempted to take off. Shortly after the runway end, the aircraft overflew a stream, touched down in a field, and came to rest on an adjacent meadow.
Injuries and Damage
The occupants were not injured. The aircraft sustained substantial damage. There was minor crop damage.
Aircraft and Crew
The aircraft was a Piper PA-28RT-201. The pilot and flight instructor were both qualified. The flight was a training/navigation flight with a passenger.
Probable Cause
The accident was due to a failed takeoff resulting from inappropriate execution of the ground roll by the crew. Subsequently, the takeoff was abandoned at a time that no longer guaranteed a safe stop. The following factors played a role in the accident: insufficient mental preparation for a time-critical maneuver, communication prone to misunderstandings between crew members, and insufficiently decisive intervention by the instructor.