# Accident 20200604011799A: Glasflugel MOSQUITO, Alvarado, TX, June 4, 2020

- Type: FAA accident report (Accident/Incident Data System), as reported
- Date: June 4, 2020, 17:00 local time
- Place: Alvarado, TX
- Airport: Luscombe
- Damage: Substantial damage
- Phase of flight: Landing: Rollout
- Operating rules: General operating rules (Part 91)
- Location: 32.3461° N, 97.1986° W: From the FAA
- Nearby events: https://openairdocs.org/map.md?lat=32.3461&lon=-97.1986&mi=10
- Aircraft: N24HC, registered now (https://openairdocs.org/aircraft/N24HC) (OpenAirDocs)
- Registry model: Glasflugel MOSQUITO (registry code 3800350, https://openairdocs.org/model/glasflugel-mosquito) (OpenAirDocs)
- Registry engine: NONE (registry code 00000, https://openairdocs.org/engine/none) (OpenAirDocs)
- Reported make and model: GLASFLUGEL MOSQUITO
- Reported engine: NONE NONE
- People aboard: 1
- Fatal injuries: 0
- Other injuries: 0
- Pilot certificates: Private pilot
- Pilot flight hours: 457 total, 211 in this make and model, 6 in the last 90 days
- NTSB investigation: [NTSB CEN20CA218](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb/CEN20CA218) (OpenAirDocs)
- FAA source: FAA Aviation Safety Information Portal (https://asip.faa.gov/)
- Page: https://openairdocs.org/incident/20200604011799A

## Narrative

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

THE PILOT HAD BEEN FLYING FOR ABOUT THREE HOURS IN A GLIDER WHEN HE LOST SUFFICIENT THERMAL ACTIVITY TO STAY ALOFT.  THE PILOT SELECTED LUSCOMBE AIRPORT, A PRIVATE GRASS LANDING STRIP HAD ONCE USED.  THE PILOT CIRCLED OVER THE SELECTED LANDING SITE TO ENSURE ITS SUITABILITY FOR LANDING.  THE PILOT ENTERED THE TRAFFIC PATTERN AND LANDED.  UPON LANDING, IT WAS DISCOVERED THAT THE GRASS STRIP HAD NOT BEEN MOWED IN SOME TIME AS THE GRASS WAS, ?WAIST HIGH?, OBSCURING THE PILOT?S VIEW FROM THE COCKPIT.  IT WAS NOT POSSIBLE FOR THE  PILOT TO DETERMINE THE HEIGHT OF THE GRASS ON THE RUNWAY FROM THE AIR.  THE AIRPORT IS LISTED ON THE CURRENT DFW SECTIONAL CHART AS WELL AS THE DFW TERMINAL AREA CHART.  THERE WERE NO NOTAMS RELATIVE LUSCOMBE AIRPORT.   WITH NO CENTER LINE REFERENCE, THE AIRCRAFT VEERED TO THE RIGHT AND STRUCK A FENCE POST.  THE RIGHT WING AND FUSELAGE WERE SUBSTANTIALLY DAMAGED.  THE PILOT WAS NOT INJURED.

## 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 CEN20CA218](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb/CEN20CA218), Jun 4, 2020: Glasflugel Mosquito (N24HC), Alvarado, TX, substantial damage. Probable cause: The pilot's decision to divert to the private airport and his subsequent failure to maintain directional control while landing on a turf runway that contained tall grass.

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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