What happened
On 17 March 2003, a Yak 52, registration RA44463, was conducting a private flight at Royal Naval Air Station, Yeovilton. The primary objective of the sortie was to allow the co-pilot to gain familiarity with the aircraft following a period of aerobatic flight involving stalls and spins.
Upon returning to the airfield circuit, the commander took control of the aircraft for the initial landing. During the approach, the commander requested that the second pilot manage the extension of the flaps and landing gear. Following touchdown, the aircraft's speed decreased to between 10 and 20 knots while the engine remained at idle. As the commander requested that the flaps be retracted, the second pilot inadvertently moved the landing gear lever to the up position.
This error caused the aircraft to lose stability and settle onto its right side. In an attempt to manage the situation, the commander immediately shut down the engine by cutting the fuel and switching off the magnetos. As the propeller stopped, the aircraft slewed to the right and came to a halt at the edge of the runway, resting on its tail, the right wing tip, and the extended nose leg. There were no injuries to the two crew members.
The investigation
Investigators examined the actions of the crew and the sequence of cockpit inputs during the landing phase. The investigation established that while the second pilot possessed significant flying experience, including aerobatics, he was not yet familiar with the specific controls of the Yak 52.
Evidence indicated that the second pilot had experienced momentary confusion while turning onto final approach, necessitating a request to the commander to verify that the landing gear was properly extended. The investigation concluded that this lack of familiarity with the aircraft's cockpit layout led to the mistaken selection of the landing gear lever during the landing roll.