Accident to the Tecnam P2008 registered F-HJYR on 24/09/2023 at Le Plessis-Belleville

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 pilot’s statement and a video. This information has not been independently validated by the BEA.

1. History of the flight

The pilot, accompanied by a passenger, had planned to carry out a local flight from Plessis-
Belleville aerodrome.

Before entering runway 07[1], the pilot carried out all the before take-off actions including the extension of the flaps to the take-off configuration. He lined up, held the brakes and displayed an engine speed of 1,600 rpm. He released the brakes and applied full power a few seconds later. According to the pilot, the engine speed increased to 2,700 rpm. During the take-off run and around 15 s after releasing the brakes, the aeroplane deviated to the left of the runway centreline. The pilot reported that he carried out the rotation at 50 kt as indicated in the flight manual. Roughly two seconds after the rotation, the stall warning sounded. The pilot decided to reject the take-off. He made a right roll input to try to return to the runway centreline and reduced power. Around five seconds after the rotation, the right landing gear struck the runway first with some force. The pilot announced over the radio the rejected take-off and vacated the runway via taxiway E2.

The right landing gear failed and separated from the aircraft while it was taxiing along taxiway N. Additional observations found that the left landing gear had also been damaged in the hard landing.

2. Additional information

2.1 Pilot information

The pilot held a PPL(A) obtained in 2020, and had logged 92 flight hours at the time of the occurrence, including 80 hours on the P2008. He had flown 3 h 12 min in the previous 3 months; he had not flown in the month preceding the accident.

2.2 Meteorological information

The 13:30 METAR for Paris-Charles de Gaulle, situated at 9.6 NM from Plessis-Belleville, indicated wind from 170° of 12 kt, visibility of more than 10 km, no cloud cover and a temperature of 18 °C for a dew point at 8 °C.

2.3 Aircraft information

The Tecnam P2008 JC is the Tecnam P2008 version certified under EASA CS-VLA rules. It is equipped with a 100 hp Rotax 912 engine and its maximum take-off weight is 630 kg.

The aeroplane is equipped with a non-steerable nose gear. When taxiing, the aeroplane is kept straight by differential braking or from a certain speed, by means of the elevator.

The aeroplane had already flown in the morning, no fault had been recorded in the logbook.

December 2023