Primary finding
Probable cause
The the pilot's poorly planned approach; his failure to select the proper touch down point; and inadequate remedial action.
Investigator assessment
Analysis narrative
The airplane's nose wheel struck 9 inches below the runway, shearing off the nose wheel causing the airplane to nose over onto its back. The pilot was planning to land on the numbers. The terrain before the runway threshold slopes upward and the runway has a minus 1.2% gradient. The runway numbers are located on the approach end of the runway. The pilot reported encountering a strong downdraft, but the surface winds were only 10 knots. The pilot failed to select the proper touch down point and failed to adequately correct the situation when it became evident that the airplane was going to land short of the runway environment.
Source record
Factual narrative
-