BEA - Office of Investigations and Analysis for Civil Aviation Safety of the French Republic

02/12/2026 | Press release | Distributed by Public on 02/12/2026 07:55

Accident to the Nicollier HN700 registered F-PADB on 02/05/2022 at Blois-Le Breuil

Accident to the Nicollier HN700 registered F-PADB on 02/05/2022 at Blois-Le Breuil

Incorrect installation of roll control cables, loss of control on take-off, tipping over, collision with the ground

Responsible entity

France - BEA

Investigation progression Closed
Progress: 100%

As part of the removal of the manual rudder control installed on F-PADB and of several maintenance operations, the pilot carried out a number of critical tasks alone. On reassembling the roll control linkage, he incorrectly assembled the control linkage cables, making the aeroplane uncontrollable in roll.

During the take-off, the aeroplane tipped over and collided with the ground.

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General information
Local date 02/05/2022
Responsible entity France - BEA
State or area of occurrence France - 41 Loir-et-Cher
Location Blois le Breuil AD
Human consequences Fatal
Number of death 1
Aircraft consequences Destroyed
Occurrence class Accident
Occurence category LOC-I: Loss of control - inflight, SCF-NP: System/component failure or malfunction [non-powerplant]
File number BEA2022-0185
Flight Information
Aircraft category Aeroplane - Small aeroplane
Operator France - Private Operator
Manufacturer / Model NICCOLLIER - HN700
Aircraft Registration F-PADB
State of registry France
Last departure point France - LFOQ : Blois Le Breuil
Planned destination France - LFOQ : Blois Le Breuil
Flight phase Take-off
Serial number 79
Operator Type AG Private owner
Operation Type Non-Commercial Operations - Test Flight - Post Maintenance Functional Check Flight

BEA is the French air safety investigation authority for civil aviation. The sole objective of the investigation is to improve air safety. It is intended neither to apportion blame nor to assess responsiblity.

BEA - Office of Investigations and Analysis for Civil Aviation Safety of the French Republic published this content on February 12, 2026, and is solely responsible for the information contained herein. Distributed via Public Technologies (PUBT), unedited and unaltered, on February 12, 2026 at 13:55 UTC. If you believe the information included in the content is inaccurate or outdated and requires editing or removal, please contact us at [email protected]