# Accident 20011216033709A: Schler ASW24E, El Paso, TX, December 16, 2001

- Type: FAA accident report (Accident/Incident Data System), as reported
- Date: December 16, 2001, 15:16 local time
- Place: El Paso, TX
- Airport: West Texas Airport
- Damage: Destroyed
- Phase of flight: Forced/Precautionary Landing
- Operating rules: General operating rules (Part 91)
- Location: 31.7194° N, 106.2392° W: From the FAA
- Nearby events: https://openairdocs.org/map.md?lat=31.7194&lon=-106.2392&mi=10
- Aircraft: N134EK, a cancelled registration (https://openairdocs.org/deregistered/N134EK-2002-08-19) (OpenAirDocs)
- Registry model: Schleicher ASW-24E (registry code 3801515, https://openairdocs.org/model/schleicher-asw-24e) (OpenAirDocs)
- Registry engine: Bombardier ROTAX (ALL) (registry code 09050, https://openairdocs.org/engine/bombardier-rotax-all) (OpenAirDocs)
- Reported make and model: SCHLER ASW24E
- Fatal injuries: 0
- NTSB investigation: [NTSB FTW02LA057](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb/FTW02LA057) (OpenAirDocs)
- FAA source: FAA Aviation Safety Information Portal (https://asip.faa.gov/)
- Page: https://openairdocs.org/incident/20011216033709A

## Narrative

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

(.19) ON DECEMBER 16, 2001, AT 1516 MOUNTAIN STANDARD TIME, A SCHLEICHER ASW-24E GLIDER, N134EK, WAS SUBSTANTIALLY DAMAGED WHEN IT IMPACTED TERRAIN JUST SOUTH OF THE DEPATURE RUNWAY AT THE WEST TEXAS AIRPORT, EL PASO, TEXAS. THE AIRCRAFT WAS REGISTERED TO AND OPERATED BY THE PILOT. THE PRIVATE PILOT, WHO WAS THE SOLE OCCUPANT, SUSTAINED SERIOUS INJURIES. VISUAL METEOROLOGICAL CONDITIONS PREVAILED FOR THE 14 CODE OF FEDERAL REGULATIONS PART 91 PERSONAL FLIGHT. THE LOCAL FLIGHT WAS ORGINATING AT THE TIME OF THE ACCIDENT. IN A TELEPHONE INTERVIEW WITH THE NTSB INVESTIGATOR-IN-CHARGE, THE TOW PILOT STATED THAT AT APPROXIMATELY 100 FEET ABOVE RUNWAY 8, THE TOW ROPE BROKE. HE THEN NOTICED THE GLIDER TURN RIGHT 90 DEGREES, AND THEN INITIATE A LEFT TURN BACK TO THE RUNWAY, WITH AN ANGLE OF BANK ESTIMATED TO BE "AT LEAST 90 DEGREES." THE GLIDER'S LEFT WING "HIT THE DIRT AT THE SIDE OF THE RUNWAY AND SPUN AROUND TO THE RIGHT SHEARING OFF THE TAIL SECTION." THE DEMINSIONS OF RUNWAY 8 ARE 7,505 FEET IN LENGTH AND 50 FEET IN WIDTH. THE TOW PILOT STATED THAT AT THE TIME THE TOW ROPE BROKE "THERE WAS AT LEAST 5,000 FEET OF RUNWAY REMAINING."                                                        (-23) ON DECEMBER 16, 2001, AT 1516 MST, A CHLEICHER ASW-24E GLIDER, N134EK, WAS SUBSTANTIALLY DAMAGED WHEN IT IMPACTED TERRAIN JUST SOUTH OF THE DEPARTURE RUNWAY AT WEST TEXAS AIRPORT, EL PASO, TX. THE AIRCRAFT WAS REGISTERED TO AND OPERATED BY THE PILOT. THE PRIVATE PILOT WHO WAS THE SOLE OCCUPANT, SUSTAINED SERIOUS INJURIES. VISUAL METEOROLOGICAL CONDITIONS PREVAILED FOR THE FAR PART 91 FLIGHT. THE LOCAL FLIGHT WAS ORIGINATING AT THE TIME OF THE ACCIDENT. IN A TELEPHONE INTERVIEW WITH THE NTSB IIC, THE TOW PILOT STATED THAT AT APPROXIMATELY 100 FEET ABOVE RUNWAY 8, THE TOW ROPE BROKE. HE THEN NOTICED THE GLIDER TURN RIGHT 90 DEGREES, AND THEN INITIATE A LEFT TURN BACK TO THE RUNWAY, WITH AN ANGLE OF BANK ESTIMATED TO BE "AT LEAST 90 DEGREES." THE GLIDERS LEFT WING "HIT THE DIRT AT THE SIDE OF THE RUNWAY AND SPUN AROUND TO THE RIGHT SHEARING OFF THE TAIL SECTION." (.4) DURING THE AERIAL TOW TAKEOFF OF THE GLIDER, BETWEEN 50 AND 100 FEET AGL, THE TOW ROPE BROKE. WITNESSES OBSERVED THE GLIDER TURN RIGHT, THEN MAKE A LEFT TURN BACK TOWARDS THE RUNWAY. THE GLIDER ENTERED A STEEP BANK TO THE LEFT OF APPROXIMATELY 90 DEGREES, AT WHICH TIME THE GLIDER STALLED, IMPAC                     TED THE GROUND WITH ITS LEFT WING AND NOSE, CARTWHEELED, AND CAME TO REST IN AN UPRIGHT POSITION. A TAILWIND CONDITION EXISTED AT THE TIME OF THE TAKEOFF.

## 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 FTW02LA057](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb/FTW02LA057), Dec 16, 2001: Schleicher ASW-24E (N134EK), El Paso, TX, destroyed. Probable cause: the pilot's failure to maintain minimum airspeed for flight, resulting in an inadvertent stall while maneuvering. A contributing factor was the failure of the tow rope.

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.

---
OpenAirDocs.org is an independent research project of [Contrail Labs](https://contraillabs.com/). It is not affiliated with the FAA or the NTSB. Source documents are U.S. government works in the public domain.