Accident to the Issoire Aviation - APM30 registered F-HFRM on 16/09/2014 at Le-Mans Arnage AD

Note: The following information is principally based on the pilots’ statements. This information has not been independently validated by the BEA.

This is a courtesy translation by the BEA of the Final Report on the Safety Investigation published in April 2020. As accurate as the translation may be, the original text in French is the work of reference.

1 - HISTORY OF THE FLIGHT

Following a dual flight session, the instructor asked the student pilot, who agreed, to fly his first solo aerodrome circuit with a missed approach on final followed by a second aerodrome circuit with a full stop landing.

The wind was from 110° at 5 kt. During the second final approach, on runway 02, the airspeed was stabilized at 65 kt and the student pilot held the approach path and slope. When the main landing gear touched down shortly after the aiming point markings, the student pilot felt that he had not sufficiently decrabed. He applied a left pedal input. During the nose gear touchdown, the pedal input was still being applied. The aircraft then veered abruptly to the left. The student pilot tried to counter this movement by using the pedals and the aircraft oscillated slightly about the yaw axis. He began to brake when the left main landing gear was at the edge of the runway, in the grass. The nose gear wheel struck a runway edge lighting and the nose gear bent. The aircraft came to rest a few metres further on, about 400 m after the main landing gear touchdown.

Both propeller blades were broken at their tips. The aircraft sustained some external damage to the right main landing gear fairing. A runway edge light was destroyed.

2 - ADDITIONAL INFORMATION

2.1 Meteorological Information

At the time of the accident, the wind was from 120°, varying from 110 to 130° at 6 knots, with maximum gusts at 11 knots.

2.2 Student pilot’s experience and statement

The student pilot began pilot training in April 2014. He had logged 13 hours of flight time, including three hours within the three months preceding the accident.

He indicated that the drift was about 5° on final approach and that, as he crossed the runway threshold, he had the impression that it had increased to about 10°. He indicated that he probably released his nose-up action too quickly after the main landing gear touchdown. The estimated speed at the main landing gear touchdown was approximately 55 kt.

2.3 Instructor’s statement

The instructor indicated that the maximum authorized crosswind component at the club for the first three solo flights is 5 kt. The student pilot had not encountered any difficulty in decrabing on landing during the four aerodrome circuits with the same wind component just before the solo flight. The instructor had made several flights with the student pilot, some of these had had a stronger crosswind component.