Accident to the Tecnam P2008 registered F-HPLA on 20/08/2024 at Annecy-Meythet

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 statements by the pilot and the instructor, photos, and comments transmitted by the operator. This information has not been independently validated by the BEA.

1. HISTORY OF THE FLIGHT
The pilot, accompanied by an instructor, took off at 08:30 from Annecy Meythet airport for a flight to renew his land SEP rating. After carrying out the exercises required for the renewal at 4,500 ft in the designated sector, the pilot returned to the airport to carry out runway circuits. After two touch-and-go landings, the pilot lined up for the final landing. During the landing run, when the nose wheel contacted the runway, the instructor observed what he thought was a shimmy phenomenon. He asked the pilot to take the weight off the nose wheel and not to brake. When the speed of the aeroplane decreased, the nose wheel contacted the runway again giving rise to a loud screeching noise associated with vibrations. The nose gear leg collapsed under the aeroplane and the propeller touched the runway. The aeroplane came to a halt at the end of runway.

2. ADDITIONAL INFORMATION
The 49-year-old instructor held an aeroplane Commercial Pilot Licence (CPL(A)) obtained in 2012 and the aeroplane Flight Instructor FI (A)) rating. He had logged around 7,000 flight hours.

The 19-year-old pilot held an aeroplane Private Pilot Licence (PPL (A)) obtained in 2022. He had logged 110 flight hours.

The instructor indicated that the pilot knew the aeroplane well, had a good command of the exercises and met the conditions required to renew the SEP. He specified that during the three landings, there had been no bounce or hard landing. He added that for the last landing, carried out in a configuration simulating a flap extension failure, the pilot had carried out a two-point touchdown with the correct pitch attitude. He added that when the aeroplane came to a halt, he cut off the electrical power supply (magnetos and batteries) and closed the fuel valve. He then observed a rubber mark on the runway, several metres long, made by the nose wheel.

The pilot confirmed, as did the instructor, that there were no bounces or hard landings during the three runway circuits. He specified that for the final landing, the wheel touchdown had been a little longer than the previous times, but that the remaining runway length was sufficient.

The aeroplane was resting on its nose, a few metres after the end of runway threshold and on the runway axis. The blade tips were damaged by the contact with the runway. The attachment between the landing gear leg and shock absorber strut had ruptured which allowed the gear leg to rotate towards the rear. The nose-wheel yoke was deformed and the bolt holding the wheel in the yoke was partially out of its housing. One of the two bearings guiding the wheel and allowing it to rotate was found behind the aeroplane, roughly at the point where the nose wheel initially touched down on the runway and the start of the rubber mark.

The bolt which holds the wheel in the yoke normally, and in compliance with the aeroplane manufacturer’s manual, has a locknut at each end. It was observed that one of the nuts was missing and that there was only residue from the nylon washer on the bolt. The bolt was measured; its size complied with its definition.

The statements collected suggest that the wheel yoke was deformed by the wheel jamming without it being possible to determine the initial cause (shimmy or loss of nut). The resulting vibrations would have generated excessive stress on the shock absorber strut attachment.

December 2024