‘Instructor error’ blamed for Bournemouth Airport crash
12.07.09
A small training aircraft crash-landed at Bournemouth Airport during a training flight because the instructor failed to notice the landing gear had not been down, the Echo reports an investigation concluded. The 45-year-old admitted the accident was due to ‘instructor error’ but gave a list of ‘contributory factors’ as to why the incident happened in April.
The instructor, who has not been named, said in mitigation it was the last landing of the last flight of the day; that a discussion with students may have distracted him; and that the student at the controls had been diligent in previous approaches.
The plane, a 30-year-old Beech 76 Duchess, was operated by Professional Flight Training, based at the airport. It crash-landed at 17:45 on Thursday April 16 when the aircraft landed 800 metres beyond where it should. Two students and the instructor escaped without injury but the plane was damaged beyond repair.
Police, fire and ambulance crews were called at the time of the accident and the airport was temporarily closed to allow for the runway to be cleared. A full inquiry into the incident was carried out by the Air Accident Investigation Branch. It revealed the instructor holds a commercial pilot’s licence and has more than 1,800 hours of flying experience.
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