What happened
On May 30, 1969, a Piper PA-28-160 Cherokee, registered as HB-OVH, was completing a flight from Genoa, Italy, to Geneva, Switzerland. The flight lasted approximately four hours and seven minutes. During the approach to the main runway 23, the pilot was flying too high on the glide path. In an attempt to correct the approach, the pilot increased the rate of descent, which resulted in a missed flare.
As a consequence of the improper flare, the aircraft made a violent impact with the runway surface. The impact caused the aircraft to bounce, subsequently landing heavily on its nose gear. The force of this second impact caused the nose gear fork to break.
The investigation
The investigation focused on the sequence of the landing maneuver and the structural failure of the landing gear. Investigators examined the flight path during the final approach to runway 23 and the mechanical integrity of the nose gear assembly following the impact.
Findings
- The primary cause of the accident was an improper flare following an excessively high approach.
- The pilot's decision to increase the descent rate to compensate for the high altitude led to a high-energy impact with the runway.
- The structural failure of the nose gear fork was a direct result of the heavy impact and subsequent bounce.
- There were zero fatalities and no injuries reported among the three occupants on board.
- The aircraft sustained only minor damage.