What happened
The FAA’s narrative, in sentence case. The FAA writes it in capitals and removes private details.
The pilot reported that during the local glider flight, he was unable to find sufficient lift to
Remain airborne. He selected a field that was within gliding distance and setup for landing.
However, on short final, he became fixated on a small tree in the glide path. The airspeed
Decreased, and the glider entered an inadvertent aerodynamic stall. The subsequent impact
With the terrain resulted in damage to the left wing spar and aft fuselage. The pilot stated there
Were no mechanical malfunctions or failures which precluded normal operation of the glider.
As the FAA filed it
THE PILOT REPORTED THAT DURING THE LOCAL GLIDER FLIGHT, HE WAS UNABLE TO FIND SUFFICIENT LIFT TO
REMAIN AIRBORNE. HE SELECTED A FIELD THAT WAS WITHIN GLIDING DISTANCE AND SETUP FOR LANDING.
HOWEVER, ON SHORT FINAL, HE BECAME FIXATED ON A SMALL TREE IN THE GLIDE PATH. THE AIRSPEED
DECREASED, AND THE GLIDER ENTERED AN INADVERTENT AERODYNAMIC STALL. THE SUBSEQUENT IMPACT
WITH THE TERRAIN RESULTED IN DAMAGE TO THE LEFT WING SPAR AND AFT FUSELAGE. THE PILOT STATED THERE
WERE NO MECHANICAL MALFUNCTIONS OR FAILURES WHICH PRECLUDED NORMAL OPERATION OF THE GLIDER.
NTSB investigation
The NTSB’s investigation of this event, with its probable cause and findings. Matched to this report by N-number and date.