Date:	Sunday 19 June 2022
Time:	15:55 UTC
Type:	Extra EA 300/L
Owner/operator:	2 Excel Aviation Ltd/Blades Aerobatic Display Team
Registration:	G-ZXEL
MSN:	1224
Fatalities:	Fatalities: 0 / Occupants: 1
Aircraft damage:	Minor
Category:	Accident
Location:	near Duxford Airfield, Duxford, Cambridgeshire -   United Kingdom
Phase:	Manoeuvring (airshow, firefighting, ag.ops.)
Nature:	Demo/Airshow/Display
Departure airport:	Duxford Airport (QFO/EGSU)
Destination airport:	Duxford Airport (QFO/EGSU)
Investigating agency:	AAIB
Confidence Rating:	Accident investigation report completed and information captured

Narrative:
AAIB investigation to Extra EA 300/L, G-ZXEL: Elevator trim tab detached in flight, near Duxford Airfield, Cambridgeshire, 19 June 2022. The incident was the subject of an AAIB investigation, and the following is the summary from the AAIB Report:

During a formation display routine the aircraft’s elevator trim tab detached at its hinges. The tab was still attached to the aircraft via control cables, and this caused it to flap in the slipstream causing the elevator to move up and down and causing a loud banging noise as it repeatedly struck the side of the rudder. The pilot was able to control the aircraft and make a successful landing.

The elevator trim tab had detached due to a combination of the wrong hinge type being fitted (with only one third of the glue bonding area compared to the type of hinge that should have been fitted) and insufficient glue having been applied. Other aircraft with cracked hinge tabs were found which indicated that insufficient glue had also been applied between the hinges and the tab structure. The aircraft manufacturer has since published a Service Bulletin to mandate more frequent visual detailed inspections of the trim tab hinge areas and has advised the trim tab manufacturer to ensure that sufficient glue is used when bonding the hinges.

=Damage to airframe=
Per the AAIB report "Damage to vertical tail, rudder and elevator"

=Safety Actions=
As a result of this accident, the aircraft manufacturer published Mandatory Service Bulletin SB-300-2-223 on 10 August 2022 which explains the issues identified during this investigation and requires a detailed visual inspection of the elevator trim tab hinges within 25 hours, and a recurring detailed visual inspection as part of the normal 50-hour inspection programme.

The CAA and EASA reviewed the Service Bulletin and decided that an accompanying Airworthiness Directive was not required.

The aircraft manufacturer also advised the external trim tab manufacturer to ensure that sufficient glue is
used when bonding the hinges to the tabs.

As of 22 December 2022, the aircraft manufacturer has received results from 17 aircraft which have been inspected in accordance with the Service Bulletin and none had evidence of cracks.

1. AAIB Final Report: https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/media/6409cf258fa8f55609b1413f/Extra_EA_300-L_G-ZXEL_04-23.pdf
2. AAIB Annual Safety Review 2023 p.102: https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/media/6604534991a320001182b13d/AAIB_Annual_Safety_Review_2023.pdf
3. https://www.planelogger.com/Aircraft/Registration/G-ZXEL/831005
4. http://thisisflight.net/team-directory/the-blades-aerobatic-display-team/
5. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Duxford_Aerodrome

G-ZXEL was built in 2006, first registered as G-ZXEL on 27 February 2006, and has had only \"one owner from new\". The airframe had accumulated 1,983 flying hours at the time of the incident.

Extra EA300/L G-ZXEL: One of the Blades Aerobatic Team landing, Wings & Wheels, Dunsfold Aerodrome, Surrey, 25 August 2018.

Date/time	Contributor	Updates
30-Mar-2024 07:02	Dr. John Smith	Added
30-Mar-2024 07:03	ASN	Updated [Accident report]