20220912016729A

ON 9/12/2022, AT AROUND 2:17PM CST ACFT ^PRIVACY DATA OMITTED^ WHILE INBOUND TO THE SOARING CLUB OF HOUSTON GLIDEPORT (89TA) CRASHED ABOUT 1/4 MILE DUE EAST WHILE ON APPROACH FROM DAVID WAYNE HOOKS MEMORIAL AIRPORT (DWH). THE PASSENGER STATEMENT RECEIVED ON 9/19/2022 CORRELATED WITH INTERVIEW CONDUCTED ON 9/13/2022 AT HOSPITAL. PASSENGER'S STATEMENT FOLLOWS: "OUR FLIGHT DEPARTED THE SOARING CLUB OF HOUSTON AT APPROXIMATELY 10:15AM HEADED FOR (DWH). THIS WAS ONLY MY SECOND FLIGHT IN THIS MOTORIZED GLIDER. UPON ARRIVAL THERE WE HAD AN OIL CHANGE PERFORMED ON THE MOTORIZED GLIDER. ON THE FLIGHT TO (DWH), WE HAD TECHNICAL PROBLEMS WITH THE PILOT'S COMMUNICATION HEADSET JUST PRIOR TO REACHING (DWH) AND THE PILOT TOOK MY HEADSET IN ORDER TO COMMUNICATE WITH THE TOWER AT HOOKS. BEFORE DEPARTING HOOKS AIRPORT, WE OBTAINED DIFFERENT BATTERIES FOR BOTH HEADSETS. WE DEPARTED HOOKS AIRPORT APPROXMATELY 1:30 PM (MY BEST GUESS). DURING THE RETURN FLIGHT TO (89TA), MY HEADSET MALFUNTIONED AND I LOST COMMUNICATION WITH PILOT AS HE CONTINUED USING HIS HEADSET WITH SOUND CANCELING ENGAGED. HE WAS AWARE OF THE MALFUNCTION OF MY HEADSET. AS SHOWN IN DIAGRAM MADE AT THE INTERVIEW IN HOSPITAL, WE APPROACHED HOUSTON SOARING CLUB LANDING STRIP AT SOMEWHAT OF A PERPENDICULAR ANGLE. AFTER FLYING WITH THE PILOT AT LEAST 20 TIMES OVER THE LAST 5 YEARS (GLIDER W/O AN ENGINE), I WITNESSED, THAT HE WAS ALWAYS PRECISE AND CALCULATED LANDINGS KEEPING THE MIDDLE OF THE AIRSTRIP. ON THIS DAY HIS APPROACH SEEMED INCONSISTENT WITH WHAT I HAD COME TO EXPECT. OUR ALTITUDE SEEMED LOW CONSIDERING THE TREES AT THE APPROACH END OF THE AIRSTRIP. BECAUSE OF OUR COMMUNICATION ISSUE, I DECIDED NOT TO ATTEMPT A COMMUNICATION WITH PILOT DURING THESE LAST MOMENTS OF THE FLIGHT. AS THE PILOT STARTED TO MAKE HIS TURN, I FELT WE WERE NOT GOING TO LAND SAFELY AND YELLED "(PILOT'S NAME)- WE ARE NOT GOING TO MAKE THIS". I AM UNSURE IF HE HEARD MY REMARKS OR IF HE CAME TO THE SAME CONCLUSION AT THE SAME TIME, BUT AT THAT POINT THE ENGINE RUNNING AT A REDUCED SPEED, REVVED UP IN AN ATTEMPT TO REGAIN ALTITUDE, ENDING IN A QUICK COLLISION WITH THE GROUND".

ADSB REPORT- THE AIRPLANE WAS AT APPROXIMATELY 200 FEET AGL WHEN MAKING HIS RIGHT TURN TO BASE, WHICH CORRELATES WITH PASSENGER'S STATEMENT.

^PRIVACY DATA OMITTED^ AND HIS WIFE WERE REPLACING THEIR WINDSOCK AT THEIR HANGAR, HE REMEMBERS THAT THE WIND WAS BLOWING FROM THE NORTH AT APPROXIMATELY 8 TO 10 KNOTS, HIS WIFE REMEMBERS HEARING THE ENGINE OF THE AIRPLANE THAT SOUNDED NORMAL AS IT WAS IN THE LANDING PATTERN.

INSPECTORS CHECKED THE SATELLITE MAP OF THE AIRPORT AREA, AFTER THE WITNESS STATED THE ACTIVE RUNWAY WAS 350 AND THE LOCATION AND DIRECTION OF THE DEBRIS FIELD, IT WAS THE INSPECTORS' BELIEF THAT THE PILOT MADE A DOWNWIND APPROACH FOR A RIGHT TURN TO BASE AND THE AIRCRAFT ULTIMATELY STALLED AND SPUN INTO TERRAIN.

THE ACCIDENT SCENE LOCATED ABOUT 1/8 MILE FROM THE ROADWAY IN A PASTURE AREA. THE DEBRIS FIELD FROM THE IMPACT POINT WAS IN AN EASTERLY DIRECTION FROM THE AIRPORT.

NOTICEABLE ITEMS AT THE IMPACT POINT WAS THE PITOT TUBE AND PIECES OF THE COMPOSITE PROPELLER. THE PITOT TUBE WAS TO THE RIGHT SIDE OF THE DEBRIS FIELD IN LINE WITH THE PROPELLER PIECES INDICATING A STEEP IMPACT ANGLE OF THE AIRCRAFT AT THAT POINT. FROM THAT POINT THE DEBRIS INDICATED THE AIRCRAFT WAS POSSIBLY TUMBLING AND BREAKING UP FROM THE PIECES NOTED AND THE BROKEN AFT FUSELAGE.

THE WRECKAGE WAS STREWN ABOUT 75 TO 100 YARDS TO THE FINAL RESTING PLACE OF THE AIRCRAFT WHICH WAS INVERTED. THE TAIL WAS BROKEN FROM THE MAIN BODY, BUT STILL ATTACHED BY CABLES. FLIGHT CONTROL CONTINUITY WAS ACCOMPLISHED WITH NO SIGNS OF FAILURE IN CABLES OR PUSH RODS. ENGINE WAS RUNNING AT TIME OF IMPACT AND IT WAS VERIFIED BY PASSENGER THAT THERE WAS NO ENGINE FAILURE. NO POST CRASH FIRE. PASSENGER RECEIVED A DEEP LACERATION TO THE LEFT LEG JUST BELOW THE KNEE AND A BROKEN RIB. PILOT HAD BROKEN FEMUR AND OPEN WOUNDS THAT CAUSED EXCESSIVE BLEEDING LEADING TO CARDIAC ARREST.