Runway excursion involving a Piper PA-38-112, VH-FTX, Hoxton Park Aerodrome, New South Wales, on 29 November 1997

A student pilot on his first solo flight lost control during the landing sequence. The aircraft departed the runway and came to rest on the adjoining grass, damaging the propeller and nose wheel strut.

The instructor reported that the approach appeared normal but the aircraft floated after the flare. The student applied some power but the aircraft landed heavily on the nosewheel, bending the nose strut. The instructor suggested that the student had probably not appreciated the aircraft would be significantly lighter without an instructor on board, and consequently be more likely to float after the landing flare, prior to touchdown.