Piper PA-28-140 Cherokee, G-ZEBY, 23 June 2005
Piper PA-28-140 Cherokee, G-ZEBY
Summary:
The accident flight was the pilot’s second solo flight as part of his training for a private pilot’s licence. The pilot had already completed five successful circuits when he lined up to land on Runway 22 grass. The wind was from 260º(M) at 4 kt and the visibility was greater than 10 km. The aircraft touched down on the runway and then bounced back into the air. It then descended and bounced again heavily a second time. The pilot applied full throttle to attempt a go-around but at this point the aircraft’s pitch attitude was already below the horizon and the aircraft touched down heavily on its nose gear, causing the nose gear to collapse. The pilot shut down the aircraft and was able to exit the aircraft via the cabin door. The pilot candidly admitted in his report that he had misjudged his height during the flare and this resulted in the initial bounce. The severity of the bounce took him by surprise and caused him to add power at the wrong time to initiate a successful go-around.
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