Runway excursion

Initial touchdown occurred about one third of the way along the 518 metre strip. A slight bounce followed and as soon as the aircraft had settled on the ground again the brakes were applied. There was no noticeable retardation and the pilot attempted to go around. The nosewheel struck a gable marker just prior to the boundary fence, and the left mainwheel contacted the top strands of the fence. The fuselage was punctured by a fence post and the pilot abandoned the take-off attempt. An inspection of the strip immediately after the occurrence revealed a very heavy dew on the short, thick grass surface.

The takeoff was attempted on a grassed sandy strip. The pilot reported that the aircraft seemed to accelerate slower than normal. At 50 knots he lowered half flap, and as the indicated airspeed approached 60 knots he realised that insufficient runway length remained to effect the takeoff. The pilot pulled back on the control column but the aircraft did not rotate. He then closed the throttle but was unable to stop the aircraft in the remaining runway. The aircraft overran the runway and overturned. No fault was found with the aircraft that may have contributed to the occurrence. It is probable that the soft, sparsely covered, sandy strip surface contributed to the reported poor acceleration. The pilot's delay in abandoning the takeoff attempt resulted in there being insufficient strip remaining in which to stop the aircraft.

The pilot had not been authorised to conduct the flight and had never previously operated into the strip. He had arranged to accompany another pilot to the destination but when that pilot was unable to make the flight he decided to fly the aircraft himself. He stated that he was apprenhesive about high ground on the approach and the aircraft touched down well into the 1400 metre strip. After commencing heavy braking a late decision was made to carry out a go-around. During the attempted go-around the aircraft crossed a deep gully, off the end of the strip, and the rear fuselage struck a dirt bank. The impact caused the nosewheel to strike the ground heavily and the nosegear strut collapsed. The aircraft skidded across a paddock striking several fence posts and a fence before coming to rest on a road, 208 metres beyond the end of the strip.

On arrival at the destination, the pilot noted that the wind was from the west-south-west, but joined the circuit for landing into the north-east. On final approach the aircraft was high and fast, and touched down with only 330 metres of the 1100 metre strip remaining. At this time the pilot realised he was landing downwind, and shortly afterwards applied full power in an attempt to go around. However, the aircraft collided with the aerodrome boundary fence and came to rest on its belly after crossing a road and striking another fence.

After completing the first landing of the intended touch and go, the pilot readjusted the elevator trim, flap, and applied full power. As the speed increased to about 65 knots he attempted to select the climb attitude but found that the elevator control was jammed in the neutral position. The take-off was abandoned. However, the pilot was unable to stop the aircraft before it overran the strip and struck a levee bank. An inspection of the aircraft revealed that a small aerosol container had jammed the elevator control cables. Sometime prior to this flight the aerosol container had been left lying loose in the rear luggage compartment. It had rolled between the alloy mesh screen and the lower rear seat back into an area under the rear seat where it could foul control cables. When the take-off was abandoned very little braking was available, in the initial stages, because the aircraft was wheelbarrowing due to its speed and the jammed elevator.

The pilot hired the aircraft with the intension of carrying out some joyflights with his relatives in the Caboolture area. After departing Archerfield he completed a circuit and landing at Redcliffe before proceeding to Caboolture. On arrival in the circuit area the pilot stated that he carried out two low level circuits to inspect the airstrip before landing. One of the passengers then boarded the aircraft and takeoff was commenced in a north-easterly direction. When the aircraft had not become airborne with only 100 metres of the strip remaining, the pilot abandoned the takeoff attempt. The aircraft overran the strip and ran through a fence before the pilot was able to bring it to a halt. The pilot offloaded the passenger and after inspecting the aircraft took off from the strip and flew to Redcliffe. The investigation ascertained that the airstrip was 750 metres long and was unsuitable for the attempted operation.

The pilot had hired the aircraft to fly to Piper's Field with three friends for the day. He was familiar with the strip which is used for glider operations. On arrival in the circuit area, the pilot contacted the local gliding club by radio and was advised that gliders were landing and taking off in a southerly direction. The strip, 686 metres in length, has a one percent average down slope to the south. The wind velocity was reported as 200 degrees at 10 knots. The pilot reported that the aircraft encountered sink on final approach and that he applied power to counteract the sink. The aircraft touched down well into the strip and bounced. The second touchdown was about halfway along the strip and the pilot was unable to stop the aircraft before it overran the strip. The aircraft was damaged when it ran through a ditch which was concealed by long grass.

Circumstances:

The aircraft was taking off from a 920 metre grass strip in moderate to heavy rain. Take-off weight was about 60 kilograms below maximum authorised. Witnesses reported that the aircraft became airborne well beyond the normal position, and then only momentarily, before the pilot abandoned the take-off. The aircraft crossed the end of the strip and ran across a beach before coming to rest in chest deep water. The pilot of a following aircraft later indicated that there was a significant downwind component during the first aircraft's take-off attempt.

Significant Factors:

The following factor was considered relevant to the development of the accident:

1. The take-off attempt was made in downwind conditions, for reasons which were not determined.

The pilot had commenced superspreading operations at about midday, and was returning to his base strip at the completion of the day's activities. He was landing towards the west. The strip slopes up 4` to the west. The pilot reported that he had not been aware until the flare that he was landing with a tailwind component, as there had been a westerly component in his operations area. He touched down some distance along the strip. Due to looking into the setting sun, he misjudged the distance remaining and was slow to apply braking. When it was obvious that the aircraft would not stop before the boundary fence, he turned the aircraft to the left to minimise damage. The outer right wing struck a fence post.

The aircraft was taking off towards the north, into an estimated 8-10 knot headwind, from a strip surrounded by light scrub and trees. Shortly after lift-off the pilot said the aircraft began to sink, the stall warning horn sounded and the airspeed rapidly decreased by at least 10 knots. He said he considered the aircraft would not be able to outclimb trees ahead and therefore aborted the take-off. The aircraft was placed back onto the strip but could not be prevented from overrunning the end and colliding with small trees. The circumstances of the accident are considered to be consistent with the effects of low level windshear resulting from the shielding effect of the trees upwind of the strip. This accident was not the subject of a formal on scene investigation.