AAIB investigation to Vans RV-8, G-JBTR
Runway excursion following loss of control while landing, Perth Airport, 23 June 2018.
Summary:
The aircraft touched down in “almost” a three-point attitude, with an estimated crosswind from the right of 5 kt. Although it was drifting slightly to the right at touchdown, the aircraft initially tracked straight, with all three wheels in contact with the asphalt runway. Two or three seconds after touchdown, the pilot heard a tyre squeal and the aircraft turned quickly right and departed the runway, despite his attempts to correct the turn using both the rudder bar and the wheelbrakes.
The aircraft slid sideways and as it left the paved surface, moving at a groundspeed of approximately 40 kt, the left main landing gear collapsed, causing the left wing and the propeller to strike the ground. The occupants vacated without difficulty after the aircraft came to rest, orientated on a northerly heading.
No mechanical defects were evident, so the pilot suspected that he may have initiated the right turn by inadvertently applying right brake, with the left mainwheel possibly lifting during the turn. This may have meant his subsequent application of left brake was ineffective, while rudder authority was diminished as the aircraft decelerated.
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