Accident to the Czech Sport PS28 registered F-HSAB on 30/09/23 at Nouméa

This is a courtesy translation by the BEA of the Final Report on the Safety Investigation. As accurate as the translation may be, the original text in French is the work of reference.

Note: the following information is principally based on the student pilot’s statement. This information has not been independently validated by the BEA.

1. History of the flight

On the day of the flight, on his arrival at the flying club, the student pilot attended a briefing with his instructor. The instructor asked the student pilot if he felt able to undertake the flight and then authorised him to carry out supervised airport circuits.

The student pilot indicated that when he took the aeroplane, he noticed nothing abnormal during the pre-flight inspection, the braking test and while taxiing to the runway holding point. After carrying out the before take-off checklist and the engine tests, he received clearance to take-off from runway 17 and began a series of supervised runway circuits. The first two circuits proceeded normally.

The student pilot explained that on final for runway 17, during the third approach, he was cleared for a touch-and-go with a wind from 116° of 10 kt. He stated that the axis, slope and speed parameters (60 kt) were correct and that the aeroplane was correctly configured (pump and lights on, flaps in landing position (30°)).

The student pilot indicated that on short final, while the parameters were still nominal, he slightly corrected the drift and flared. The main gear came into contact with the runway and the aeroplane bounced slightly several times. The nose gear and one of the two propeller blades ruptured.

The student pilot explained that he was surprised by the first bounce because his speed was not high. He then pushed on the stick instead of holding it. He thought that this action probably led to a nose-down effect and caused a series of bounces until the nose gear ruptured.

2. Additional information

2.1. Meteorological information

The French met office, Météo-France, indicated that at the time of the accident, the reported weather conditions at Magenta airport were as follows:

• scattered to few clouds, no ceiling;

• visibility greater than 10 km;

• mean wind from the south-east of between 10 and 15 kt at ground level (no gusts). The maximum value of the instantaneous wind recorded at 10:37 was 17 kt.

2.2. Nouméa Magenta airport

The airport has a paved runway 17-35. The landing distance available on paved runway 17 is 1,019 m.

2.3. Student pilot information

The 37-year-old student pilot had been flying with the flying club since 2019, with break periods. He was authorised to fly the C152 for the first time on 11 May 2021. He total experience was approximately 60 flight hours including approximately 50 hours on the PS28. He had completed solo runway circuits on three occasions on 1 September 2022, and 17 and 29 April 2023. He had been flying regularly with the same instructor since July 2023.

March 2024