# Accident 19980221003859A: Szd SZD48, Pikeville, TN, February 21, 1998

- Type: FAA accident report (Accident/Incident Data System), as reported
- Date: February 21, 1998, 15:00 local time
- Place: Pikeville, TN
- Damage: Substantial damage
- Phase of flight: Final Approach
- Operating rules: General operating rules (Part 91)
- Location: 35.5999° N, 85.1908° W: From the FAA, an estimate near the named town, within about 3 miles
- Nearby events: https://openairdocs.org/map.md?lat=35.5999&lon=-85.1908&mi=10
- Aircraft: N25MZ, a cancelled registration (https://openairdocs.org/deregistered/N25MZ-2013-10-31) (OpenAirDocs)
- Registry model: Pdps Pzl-Bielsko SZD-48-3 (registry code 8821646, https://openairdocs.org/model/pdps-pzl-bielsko-szd-48-3) (OpenAirDocs)
- Registry engine: NONE (registry code 00000, https://openairdocs.org/engine/none) (OpenAirDocs)
- Reported make and model: SZD SZD48
- Fatal injuries: 0
- Pilot flight hours: 268 total, 123 in this make and model, 9 in the last 90 days
- NTSB investigation: [NTSB ATL98LA051](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb/ATL98LA051) (OpenAirDocs)
- FAA source: FAA Aviation Safety Information Portal (https://asip.faa.gov/)
- Page: https://openairdocs.org/incident/19980221003859A

## Narrative

As the FAA filed it, in capitals; the FAA replaces private details with ^PRIVACY DATA OMITTED^.

LOST THERMAL. STRUCK TREES ON APPROACH TO AN OPEN FIELD. (-23) AFTER LOSING THERMAL LIFT DURING THERMAL SOARING, THE PILOT OF A PDPS PZL-BIELSKO SZD-48-3, N25MZ, ATTEMPTED AN EMERGENCY LANDING INTO A FIELD IN PIKEVILLE, TENNESSEE. DURING THE DESCENT THE GLIDER COLLIDED WITH A TREE. THE GLIDER SUSTAINED SUBSTANTIAL DAMAGE, AND THE PILOT RECEIVED MINOR INJURIES.

## The NTSB's investigation of this event (1)

From the NTSB's public API. Aircraft are matched to registry aircraft by N-number and event date, checked against the reported serial number, make and model; the registry's history has gaps, so older matches can be wrong. Compare the reported make and model.

- [NTSB ATL98LA051](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb/ATL98LA051), Feb 21, 1998: PZL-Bielsko SZD-48-3 (N25MZ), Pikeville, TN, substantial damage. Probable cause: The loss of thermal lift.

From the FAA Accident/Incident Data System. Reports are matched to registry aircraft by N-number and event date, checked against the reported make and model; the registry's history has gaps, so older matches can be wrong. Compare the reported make and model. For accidents, the NTSB's own investigation is the fuller record.

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