# Accident 20020204002279A: Scwzer SGS233A, Warner Springs, CA, February 4, 2002

- Type: FAA accident report (Accident/Incident Data System), as reported
- Date: February 4, 2002, 12:45 local time
- Place: Warner Springs, CA
- Airport: Warner Springs Airport
- Damage: No damage
- Operating rules: General operating rules (Part 91)
- Location: 33.2809° N, 116.6006° W: From the FAA, an estimate near the named town, within about 3 miles
- Nearby events: https://openairdocs.org/map.md?lat=33.2809&lon=-116.6006&mi=10
- Aircraft: N34292, registered now (https://openairdocs.org/aircraft/N34292) (OpenAirDocs)
- Registry model: Schweizer SGS 2-33A (registry code 8051606, https://openairdocs.org/model/schweizer-sgs-2-33a) (OpenAirDocs)
- Registry engine: NONE (registry code 00000, https://openairdocs.org/engine/none) (OpenAirDocs)
- Reported make and model: SCWZER SGS233A
- Pilot certificates: Student
- NTSB investigation: [NTSB LAX02LA079](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb/LAX02LA079) (OpenAirDocs)
- FAA source: FAA Aviation Safety Information Portal (https://asip.faa.gov/)
- Page: https://openairdocs.org/incident/20020204002279A

## Narrative

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

(-23) RELEASED FROM TOW PLANE AT 800 FEET AGL FOR PATTERN WORK AND LANDING PRACTICE. MADE NORMAL APPROACH TO RUNWAY 26. TURNED ONTO FINAL AND ATTEMPTED SLIP WITH SPOILERS. GLIDER DRIFTED LEFT OF COURSE. PILOT ATTEMPTED TO CORRECT APPROACH PATH. OVERSHOT CENTERLINE AND COLLIDED WITH 50 FOOT TREE SOUTH OF RUNWAY. GLIDER DROPPED STRAIGHT DOWN BUT REMAINED UPRIGHT AT IMPACT. NO INJURY TO SOLE OCCUPANT. (.19) ON FEBRUARY 4, 2002, ABOUT 1215 HOURS PACIFIC STANDARD TIME, A SCHWEIZER SGS 2-33A, N34292, COLLIDED WITH TREES ON FINAL AND LANDED HARD ON RUNWAY 26L AT THE WARNER SPRINGS GLIDERPORT (CL35), WARNER SPRINGS, CALIFORNIA. THE GLIDER, OWNED BY ASSOCIATED GLIDERS OF SOUTHERN CALIFORNIA AND RENTED BY THE PILOT, WAS OPERATED UNDER THE PROVISIONS OF 14 CFR PART 91. THE GLIDER SUSTAINED SUBSTANTIAL DAMAGE. THE STUDENT PILOT, THE SOLE OCCUPANT, WAS NOT INJURED. VISUAL METEOROLOGICAL CONDITIONS PREVAILED FOR THE LOCAL AREA INSTRUCTIONAL FLIGHT AND NO FLIGHT PLAN HAD BEEN FILED. THE FLIGHT ORIGINATED FROM CL35. THE SAFETY BOARD INVESTIGATOR-IN-CHARGE (IIC) INTERVIEWED THE STUDENT PILOT. THE PILOT STATED THAT HE WAS DOING PATTERN WORK. THE TAKEOF                                                FS WERE TO BE CIRCUIT TOWS, AND HE WAS TO PRACTICE FRONTAL SLIPS AND NORMAL LANDINGS. HE STATED THAT THIS WAS THE FIRST TOW OF THE MORNING. HE WAS ABOUT 800 FEET ABOVE GROUND LEVEL (AGL) AND THE APPROACH SEEMED NORMAL; HOWEVER, THERE WAS A LITTLE TURBULENCE. HE TURNED ON FINAL AND ATTEMPTED A FRONTAL SLIP TO A LANDING. THE GLIDER STARTED TO DRIFT TO THE LEFT. THE STUDENT PILOT STATED THAT HE MUST HAVE CROSS-CONTROLLED THE GLIDER AND COULD NOT RETURN THE GLIDER TO RUNWAY CENTERLINE. HE MANEUVERED TO AVOID A TREE AND STALLED THE GLIDER AS THE LEFT WING CONTACTED THE TREE. THE STUDENT PILOT STATED THAT THE GLIDER "PANCAKED INTO THE RUNWAY."

## 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 LAX02LA079](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb/LAX02LA079), Feb 4, 2002: Schweizer SGS 2-33A (N34292), Warner Springs, CA, substantial damage. Probable cause: The student pilot's failure to maintain directional control during the landing sequence.

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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