Flight
On Saturday, June 17, 1972, a pilot participating in an air rally with a passenger prepared to land a Piper PA-28-140B Cherokee on grass runway 23 at Geneva-Cointrin airport. The runway had an available length of 673 meters. The pilot did not compensate for a tailwind of about 8 knots. The aircraft touched down only 300 meters from the end of the runway, to the left of the centerline. Despite heavy braking, the aircraft collided with the demarcation lights of the taxiway at 17:06 CET.
Damage
The occupants were uninjured. The aircraft sustained slight damage, and two lights were damaged.
Pilot
The pilot was a German national born in 1929, holding a valid private pilot license with a restricted radiotelephone extension. She had 362 total flight hours, of which 312 were on the accident type. In the previous three months, she had flown 31 hours, all on the Piper Cherokee.
Aircraft
The aircraft, registration D-EBDB, was certified for flight. The investigation found no evidence of technical malfunction.
Weather
At the time of the accident, visibility was good. The wind was from 050° at 8 knots. Runway 23 remained in service for tailwinds up to 8-10 knots.
Analysis and Causes
The pilot did not account for the reported tailwind, resulting in a landing too close to the end of the available distance. She was unable to stop the aircraft in time. The fact that the aircraft landed on the taxiway area rather than the runway did not affect the accident, as the available distance was the same and the runway was also bounded by lights. The accident was caused by an overshoot of the maneuvering area during landing with a tailwind.