Hard landing involving Cessna 182, VH-JXX, Bathurst Airport, New South Wales, on 1 April 2017

What happened

On 1 April 2017, the pilot of a Cessna R182 aircraft, registered VH-JXX, conducted a private flight from Broken Hill to Bathurst, New South Wales, with one passenger on board.

The aircraft arrived overhead Bathurst Airport at about 1130 Eastern Daylight-saving Time (EDT) and the pilot elected to join the circuit on a left downwind for runway 35. The pilot reported that the approach was normal, and that they aimed to touch down slightly beyond the runway threshold.

Due to a crosswind of about 8 kt, the pilot recalled that the left main wheel touched down immediately before the right. The propeller then struck the runway and the nose landing gear collapsed. The aircraft skidded a short distance before coming to rest on the runway.

The aircraft sustained substantial damage and the pilot and passenger were uninjured (Figure 1).

Figure 1: VH-JXX showing damage to the propeller and nose landing gear

Source: Aircraft owner

Pilot comments

The pilot commented that the approach seemed normal, all indications were normal, and the landing did not feel particularly hard. The first time they were aware something was not normal was when the nose of the aircraft contacted the runway. They had lowered the landing gear on downwind and confirmed the green light indicated the gear was safely down and locked, and had also verified the main wheels were down by doing a visual check.

Post-accident inspection

An aircraft maintenance engineer inspected the aircraft after the accident. The nose landing gear had collapsed, and the gear doors were broken. The cowl flaps were damaged, the firewall was buckled and the area under the floor in the area near the pedals was bent. There was no evidence of any fault other than the damage sustained in the impact.

Findings

These findings should not be read as apportioning blame or liability to any particular organisation or individual.

• The aircraft probably landed in a nose-low attitude resulting in a propeller strike and damage to the nose landing gear.

Aviation Short Investigations Bulletin Issue 61

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