# Accident 20011229035339A: Glaser DG200, Benton, TN, December 29, 2001

- Type: FAA accident report (Accident/Incident Data System), as reported
- Date: December 29, 2001, 15:00 local time
- Place: Benton, TN
- Damage: Substantial damage
- Phase of flight: Normal Cruise
- Operating rules: General operating rules (Part 91)
- Location: 35.2264° N, 84.5847° W: From the FAA
- Nearby events: https://openairdocs.org/map.md?lat=35.2264&lon=-84.5847&mi=10
- Aircraft: N5457T, a cancelled registration (https://openairdocs.org/deregistered/N5457T-2002-03-05) (OpenAirDocs)
- Registry model: Glaser-Dirks Flugzeugbau DG-200 (registry code 3802506, https://openairdocs.org/model/glaser-dirks-flugzeugbau-dg-200) (OpenAirDocs)
- Registry engine: NONE (registry code 00000, https://openairdocs.org/engine/none) (OpenAirDocs)
- Reported make and model: GLASER DG200
- People aboard: 1
- Fatal injuries: 0
- Pilot flight hours: 422 total, 24 in this make and model, 12 in the last 90 days
- NTSB investigation: [NTSB ATL02LA027](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb/ATL02LA027) (OpenAirDocs)
- FAA source: FAA Aviation Safety Information Portal (https://asip.faa.gov/)
- Page: https://openairdocs.org/incident/20011229035339A

## Narrative

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

(.19) ON DECEMBER 29, 20001, AT ABOUT 1500 EASTERN STANDARD TIME, A GLASER-DIRKS FLUGZEUGBAU DG-200, N5457T, REGISTERED TO A PRIVATE OWNER, OPERATING AS A 14 CFR PART 91 PERSONAL FLIGHT CRASHED WHILE MANEUVERING IN THE VICINITY OF BENTON, TENNESSEE. VISUAL METEOROLOGICAL CONDITIONS PREVAILED AND NO FLIGHT PLAN WAS FILED. THE GLIDER SUSTAINED SUBSTANTIAL DAMAGE. THE PRIVATE PILOT REPORTED MINOR INJURIES. THE FLIGHT ORIGINATED FROM CHILHOWEE GLIDER PORT, BENTON, TENNESSEE, ABOUT 2 HOURS BEFORE THE ACCIDENT. THE PILOT STATED HE WAS MANEUVERING VFR ALONG A MOUNTAIN RIDGE ABOUT 400 FEET ABOVE THE RIDGE LINE WHEN HE EXPERIENCED A STRONG DOWNDRAFT AND THE GLIDER COLLIDED WITH TREES. THE GLIDER DID NOT ENCOUNTER ANY PRECRASH MECHANICAL FAILURE OR MALFUNCTION BEFORE IT COLLIDED WITH TREES. (-23) DURING FLIGHT THERMAL LIFT WAS LOST, PILOT WAS UNABLE TO REACH THE AIRPORT. GLIDER CAME TO REST IN A TREE WITH SUBSTANTIAL DAMAGE.              (.4) ON DECEMBER 29, 2001, AT ABOUT 1500 EASTERN STANDARD TIME, A GLASER-DIRKS FLUGZEUGBAU DG-200,GLIDER, N5457T, REGISTERED TO A PRIVATE OWNER, OPERATING AS A 14 CFR PART 91 PERSONAL FLIGHT COLLIDED WITH TREES WHILE MANEUVER                                 ING IN THE VICINITY OF BENTON, TENNESSEE, FOLLOWING THE LOSS OF THERMAL LIFTING. VISUAL METEOROLOGICAL CONDITIONS PREVAILED AND NO FLIGHT PLAN WAS FILED. THE GLIDER SUSTAINED SUBSTANTIAL DAMAGE. THE PRIVATE PILOT REPORTED MINOR INJURIES. THE FLIGHT ORIGINATED FROM CHILHOWEE GLIDER PORT, BENTON, TENNESSEE, AT 1300. THE PILOT STATED HE WAS FLYING NORTH IN A RIDGE LIFT. HE TURNED BACK OVER A PLATEAU AREA WHERE HE HAD PREVIOUSLY ENCOUNTERED GOOD THERMALS. HE LOOKED AT HIS AIRSPEED INDICATOR BEFORE TURNING AND IT INDICATED 90 KNOTS. HE CONTINUED HIS TURN TOWARD THE FRONT OF THE RIDGE TOWARD THE VALLEY AND ENCOUNTERED A SEVERE SINK RATE ABOUT 180-DEGREES INTO THE TURN. THE VERTICAL SPEED INDICATOR WENT FROM A CLIMB TO A 1,300 FOOT PER MINUTE DESCENT. ACCORDING TO THE PILOT, THE GLIDER WAS ABOUT 400 FEET ABOVE GROUND LEVEL WHICH UNDER NORMAL CIRCUMSTANCES SHOULD HAVE BEEN ENOUGH ALTITUDE TO CLEAR THE RIDGELINE. AS HE CONTINUED THE TURN, THE SINK RATE INCREASED BETWEEN 1,500 FEET PER MINUTE TO 3,000 FEET PER MINUTE. THE GLIDER DESCENDED INTO TREES SHORT OF THE RIDGELINE. THE PILOT FURTHER STATED HE DID NOT EXPERIENCE ANY MECHANICAL FAILURE OR MALFUNCTION OF THE AIRFRAME OR FLIGHT CONTROL SYSTEM.

## 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 ATL02LA027](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb/ATL02LA027), Dec 29, 2001: Flugzeugbau DG-200 (N5457T), Benton, TN, substantial damage. Probable cause: The pilot's inadvertent encounter with a downdraft while maneuvering in a ridge lift during a turn resulting in an in-flight collision with trees.

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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