Yesterday afternoon's flying display was brought to an abrupt halt at around 15.30 when the German Grob Aerospace G140TP suffered a collapsed nose gear on the active runway after it landed following a steep approach.
Flown by the hugely experienced company chief test pilot Uli Schell, the attractive four-seater turboprop aircraft blocked Le Bourget's main display runway for more than an hour, before the airfield's emergency crews removed the crippled aircraft from the tarmac.
Powered by a Rolls-Royce 250-B17F engine, the fully aerobatic G140TP has a largely composite airframe and its German builders say that it is ideal for use either as a sophisticated trainer, or as a fast, comfortable business aircraft. The first prototype appeared at Paris two years ago, but the production-standard aircraft being flown by Schell in yesterday's display began its flight test programme in March.
Visitors to the Le Bourget show have been impressed all week by Schell's handling of the aircraft as he put it through a series of aerobatic manoeuvres.
The cause of yesterday's incident won't be known for some time. As Flight Daily News went to press, neither Grob Aerospace nor the flying display organisers were prepared to comment.
Source: Flight Daily News