ASN Wikibase Occurrence # 174996
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| Date: | Friday 4 July 1997 |
| Time: | 20:00 |
| Type: |  Gulfstream American AA-5A Cheetah |
| Owner/operator: | Emberden Ltd |
| Registration: | G-COPY |
| MSN: | AA5A-0754 |
| Year of manufacture: | 1978 |
| Fatalities: | Fatalities: 0 / Occupants: 0 |
| Aircraft damage: | Destroyed |
| Category: | Accident |
| Location: | Canterbury (Maypole) Airfield, Maypole Road, Canterbury, Kent -
 United Kingdom
|
| Phase: | Taxi |
| Nature: | Private |
| Departure airport: | Canterbury (Maypole) Airfield, Maypole Road, Canterbury, Kent (EGHB) |
| Biggin Hill Airport, Kent (BQH/EGKB) | |
| Investigating agency: | AAIB |
| Confidence Rating: |  Accident investigation report completed and information captured |
Written off (damaged beyond repair) 4 July 1997 at Canterbury Airfield, Kent in unusual circumstances: the pilot had problems starting the engine. He managed to get the engine going, and didn't want to turn it off, so he left it running while he went off to find the engine battery cover. When he returned, he found that G-COPY had taxied off on its own (!) then bounced down a ravine, and was eventually stopped by colliding with some trees. According to the official AAIB report into the accident:
"The aircraft's brakes were holding and had done so during the power checks. The pilot therefore decided that his only chance was to leave the aircraft with the engine running and to run over to the security guard's caravan to retrieve the battery cover. He reasoned that he could be there and back within 90 seconds and vacated the aircraft.
He found that the airfield security guard did not know the whereabouts of the battery cover. The pilot returned to the parking position but the aircraft had gone. At this time, the airfield manager arrived at the scene and was informed that the aircraft had been stolen. He and the pilot circumnavigated the airfield by car in search of the aircraft, but failed to locate the machine.
The airfield manager informed the local police of the event, then suggested an aerial reconnaissance flight using his PA-28 aircraft. This was carried out, initially to cover the local area around the airfield, but found nothing. Upon returning to directly overhead the airfield, a steep turn was initiated in order to inspect the airfield boundaries. During this manoeuvre, the missing aircraft's tail was sighted in woods just to the north of the boundary.
Subsequent inspection indicated that the aircraft had started to move forward and turned left through almost 180 degrees, running downhill before becoming airborne for a short distance and colliding with trees. It came to rest in a ditch and had incurred substantial damage.
The aircraft's sliding canopy, which had been left open, had closed during the impact sequence. Luggage and flight equipment located in the rear of the aircraft had been thrown into the front. The pilot stated that he realised the decision to leave the aircraft unattended was misconceived, but that it was in a stable condition when he left it."
The AAIB report notes that the aircraft sustained "Extensive damage to propeller, landing gear and wings". As a result, the registration G-COPY was belatedly cancelled by the CAA on 18 February 1999 as "Permanently withdrawn from use"
Grumman AA-5A G-COPY was ex-G-BIEU from 10 October 1980 until 8 March 1982. Before that, it was US Registered as N23836 (1978-1980)
Accident investigation:
 |
|
Sources:
1. AAIB: https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/media/5422fe7ae5274a131400094b/dft_avsafety_pdf_501905.pdf
2. CAA: https://cwsprduksumbraco.blob.core.windows.net/g-info/HistoricalLedger/G-COPY.pdf
3. CAA: As G-BIEU 1980-82 - https://cwsprduksumbraco.blob.core.windows.net/g-info/HistoricalLedger/G-BIEU.pdf
4. https://sussexhistoryforum.co.uk/index.php?topic=17841.0
5. https://www.airport-data.com/aircraft/G-COPY.html
Revision history:
| Date/time | Contributor | Updates |
|---|---|---|
| 31-Mar-2015 20:36 | Dr. John Smith | Added |
| 31-Mar-2015 20:37 | Dr. John Smith | Updated [Narrative] |
| 31-Mar-2015 20:40 | Dr. John Smith | Updated [Narrative] |
| 18-Jun-2016 21:25 | Dr.John Smith | Updated [Time, Location, Departure airport, Source] |
| 18-Jun-2016 21:26 | Dr.John Smith | Updated [Cn, Narrative] |
| 14-Nov-2020 20:44 | Dr. John Smith | Updated [Source, Narrative, Accident report] |
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