Slingsby T67M260 Firefly, G-BWXD, 17 October 2012
Slingsby T67M260 Firefly, G-BWXD
Summary:
The pilot was landing at Beverley Airfield, intending to refuel before continuing on to Wombleton Airfield. He was familiar with Beverley, having landed there some seventeen times before. It has a single grass runway, 12/30 and the runway in use was 12, which has a Landing Distance Available of 627 metres.
The aircraft touched down about one third of the way down Runway 12 with full flap and at approximately 65 kt. The pilot attempted to slow the aircraft by ‘pumping’ the brakes but this was not effective due to the wetness of the grass, so he attempted to turn the aircraft to the right, as he knew that a deep dyke ran less than 50 metres from the end of Runway 12. He was unable to complete the turn and the aircraft ran down into the dyke, coming to a halt with its nose under the water.
The pilot, who was uninjured, admitted that he should have gone around, having landed long, but at the time he thought he could still stop in time. He stated that he did not appreciate the effect that the wet grass would have on braking performance.
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