ASN Wikibase Occurrence # 173665
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| Date: | Friday 26 May 2000 |
| Time: | 18:33 |
| Type: |  Piper PA-28R-200-2 Cherokee |
| Owner/operator: | Oscar Papa Ltd |
| Registration: | G-BCOP |
| MSN: | 28R-7435296 |
| Year of manufacture: | 1974 |
| Engine model: | Lycoming IO-360-C1C |
| Fatalities: | Fatalities: 0 / Occupants: 1 |
| Aircraft damage: | Destroyed |
| Category: | Accident |
| Location: | Lower Road, Minster, Isle of Sheppy, Kent -
 United Kingdom
|
| Phase: | En route |
| Nature: | Private |
| Departure airport: | Halfpenny Green, Staffordshire (EGBO) |
| Manston, Kent (MSE/EGMH) | |
| Investigating agency: | AAIB |
| Confidence Rating: |  Accident investigation report completed and information captured |
Written off (damaged beyond repair) 26 May 2000: force landed into a field at Lower Road, Minster, Isle of Sheppy, Kent, whilst attempting to divert to Southend Airport, Essex, after aborting the intended flight from Halfpenny Green, Wolverhampton, to Manston, Kent. The aircraft was forced to make an emergency landing due to a total electrical failure. According to the summary of the official AAIB report into the accident:
"At 16:30 hours the aircraft departed from Halfpenny Green with a cloud base of 4,000 feet, good visibility permitting surface contact. At Brookmans Park the weather began to deteriorate with increased shower activity. The pilot estimated that the cloud base had reduced to broken cloud at 1,500 feet with scattered cloud at 300 to 400 feet.
At 17:48 hours the pilot established two way communication with Manston giving her position as Detling at 2,400 feet and estimate for Manston 'on the hour'. Shortly afterwards the pilot was passed the 17:50 hours Manston weather which was: 'Surface wind 140 degrees/6 knots, visibility 3,000 meters in rain, cloud broken at 800 feet, broken at 3,000 feet, temperature +12°C, dewpoint +12°C QNH 1002 mb, QFE 995 mb Runway 10 wet'.
In the light of this weather report, the pilot decided to abandon the flight to Manston and contacted Thames Radar with the intention of diverting to Southend. Whilst awaiting further instructions the pilot took up a heading for Detling VOR, as instructed, and noticed the off flags were showing on both VOR receivers. She was unable to contact Thames Radar to check if there was a fault either with the facility or the aircraft equipment. It then became apparent that the aircraft had suffered a total electrical failure.
Whilst initially the pilot considered climbing to a safe altitude and taking up a heading for Halfpenny Green and the better weather conditions to the west, she considered that there was a high risk of that she might infringe controlled airspace in the busy environment en route. Still having surface visual contact and full control of the aircraft the pilot decided to carry out a field landing. The first two fields considered were rejected due to sheep in one and cables spanning the other.
The third choice was a large field well away from the road with what appeared to be green stubble, which she considered could have been a potato crop, identification of which was made more difficult by the deteriorating weather conditions. The aircraft was positioned for a landing and, with no indication that the landing gear was correctly lowered due to the electrical problem, the aircraft was lowered to the ground in the landing attitude.
The aircraft was suddenly and violently spun through 180 degrees and became enveloped in what turned out to be rape crop. After the aircraft came to rest, the pilot turned off the fuel and exited through the normal door. The emergency services arrived on the scene approximately 20 minutes later.
The pilot concluded that the main cause of the accident was the total electrical failure in deteriorating weather conditions with no means of communicating with ATC or flying safely to an area of better weather. Her only realistic option was to carry out a field landing. The standing crop was not identified as such due to the poor visibility. No cause for the total electrical failure has been identified."
G-BCOP sustained the following damage: Both wings and tail unit damaged. Two of the three landing gear broken off. All of which was enough to deem the airframe as "damaged beyond economic repair", and the registration was cancelled by the CAA on 6 November 2000 as aircraft "destroyed"
Accident investigation:
 |
|
Sources:
1. AAIB: https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/media/5422eb59ed915d1371000065/dft_avsafety_pdf_500480.pdf
2. CAA: https://siteapps.caa.co.uk/g-info/rk=BCOP#
3. http://www.airport-data.com/aircraft/photo/000439036.html
Revision history:
| Date/time | Contributor | Updates |
|---|---|---|
| 09-Feb-2015 15:15 | Dr. John Smith | Added |
| 09-Feb-2015 15:19 | Dr. John Smith | Updated [Narrative] |
| 08-Jul-2016 13:40 | Dr.John Smith | Updated [Time, Source, Narrative] |
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