AAIB investigation to MCR-01 ULC Banbi, G-HARD
Aircraft struck the ground to the north of the runway during a go-around, Eshott Airfield, Northumberland, 18 October 2018.
Summary:
The pilot took off in G-HARD intending to complete an hour of flying including some cir-cuits at the airfield. On his second circuit, the pilot decided to practise a go-around. Hav-ing reduced power for the flare just above the runway, the pilot then applied power for the go-around. The aircraft initially yawed left and failed to climb. The pilot pulled back fur-ther on the stick and checked that the engine was delivering power. Before he could ad-just the controls further, however, the aircraft struck the ground to the left of the runway. The aircraft came to an abrupt halt and the pilot struck his head on the top of the instru-ment panel. He was able to vacate the aircraft without assistance although he was bleed-ing from a head wound.
Examination of the aircraft after the accident revealed that the pilot’s seat had partially de-tached from its mountings, and the shoulder harness had failed at the stitched joint con-necting the shoulder straps to the harness’ rear restraining belt. The Light Aircraft Asso-ciation decided to conduct tests into the suitability of this automotive type of seat belt
Download report: