- Date
- April 29, 1995, 16:05 local (20:05 UTC)
- Place
- Spartanburg, SC
- Injuries
- 1 minor, 1 uninjured
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Phase of flight
- Takeoff
- Aircraft
- N152ATLet L-23 Super Blanik
- Weather
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Status
- Completed · report August 23, 1995
- Report
- Approved by Office Director
- FAA report
- 19950429009899A
- Case key
- 3557
From the NTSB’s public API. By law, NTSB reports can’t be used as evidence in lawsuits over the accident.
On this page
Probable cause
The pilot's inadvertent use speed brakes during takeoff.
Sequence of events
NTSB’s coding before 2008: each occurrence and phase of flight, and the causes and factors under it. The codes are defined in NTSB’s coding manual.
Analysis
The pilot reported that the glider was not gaining sufficient airspeed during the takeoff roll. The tow plane pilot released the glider, and the takeoff was aborted. Due to obstructions at the departure end of the runway, the pilot attempted to maneuver the glider into an open area. The left wing contacted the ground first, and the glider ground looped. Structural damage to the wings and fuselage resulted. The pilot reported that when he was exiting the glider, he noticed that the speed brakes were in the deployed position, which correlated with the position of the speed brake handle.
Factual narrative
On April 29, 1995, at 1605 eastern daylight time, a LET L-23 Super Blanik, N152AT, was substantially damaged during an aborted takeoff at the Spartanburg Downtown Memorial Airport, Spartanburg, South Carolina. The private pilot was not injured, and his passenger had minor injuries. The glider was operated under the provisions of 14 CFR Part 91 by the pilot. Visual meteorological conditions existed at the time, and no flight plan was filed for the local, personal flight. The flight was originating at the time of the accident.
The pilot reported that the glider was not gaining sufficient airspeed during the takeoff roll. The tow plane pilot released the glider, and the takeoff was aborted. Due to obstructions at the departure end of the runway, the pilot attempted to maneuver the glider into an open area. The left wing contacted the ground first, and the glider ground looped. Structural damage to the wings and fuselage resulted. The pilot reported that when he was exiting the glider, he noticed that the speed brakes were in the deployed position, which correlated with the position of the speed brake handle.
Aircraft
- Registration
- N152AT
- Reported as
- Let L-23 Super Blanik (L-23 SUPER)
- Category
- Glider
- Serial number
- 917924
- Airframe hours
- 100
- Engine
- unknown
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Personal · Part 91
- Operator
- Harald W. Behrend
- Registered owner
- David E. Treinis
- Airworthiness certificate
- Standard, Normal
- Last inspection
- Annual · November 17, 1994 · 10 hours before
- Departed
- SPA
- Airport
- SPA · Spartanburg Downtown, runway 5, 5,200 × 100 ft, asphalt
Matched to the registry by N-number and the event date; the registry’s history has gaps, so older matches can be wrong. Compare the reported make and model.
Flight crew
As NTSB recorded them. NTSB leaves out names.
- Role
- Pilot
- Age
- 54
- Certificate
- Private
- Airplane ratings
- Single-engine land
- Medical
- Class 3, Valid Medical--w/ waivers/lim
- Seat
- Left
- Flight hours
- 1,919 total · 7 in this make and model · 1,819 as pilot in command · 19 in the last 90 days · 6 in the last 30 days
Weather
- Conditions
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Wind
- 100° at 3 knots
- Visibility
- 30 statute miles
- Lowest ceiling
- None
- Temperature
- 75 °F, dew point 46 °F
- Altimeter
- 29.00 inHg
- Observed at
- GSP, 15 nm away
FAA reports on this event · 1
The FAA’s own accident and incident reports, matched to the aircraft by N-number and date.