AAIB investigation to Cessna P120N, N210UK
Nose gear collapse on landing, Kilfinichen, Isle of Mull, Argyll and Bute, 31 May 2017.
Summary:
The aircraft took off from Wellesbourne Mountford for a flight to a private airstrip on the Isle of Mull in Scotland. The destination grass runway had a prounounced upslope of 5º with which the pilot was familiar. The pilot described a normal approach and a touchdown in a three-point attitude which was “not particularly hard.” Approximately 100 m from touchdown, the nose landing gear collapsed and detached. The propellor contacted the ground, followed by the left wingtip and the aircraft came to a halt. The pilot was wearing a lap and diagonal harness and was uninjured.
Further examination revealed that the nose landing gear had failed at the fork, leading to detachment of the nosewheel and then the nose gear attachments. The grass runway was described as soft in places and the pilot did not consider that this was a particularly hard landing. The aircraft was not examined by the AAIB and the reason for the failure of the fork is unknown.
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