- Date
- July 30, 2020, 14:30 local (19:30 UTC)
- Place
- Midlothian, TX
- Injuries
- 1 minor
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Phase of flight
- Landing
- Aircraft
- N3981AGrob G102
- Defining event
- Landing-flare/touchdown: Hard landing
- Weather
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Status
- Completed
- Report
- Approved by Office Director
- Investigation class
- Class 4 - Basic report with no Prelim publish
- NTSB office
- Central Region
- Parties
- FAA Flight Standards District Office
- FAA report
- 20200730021889A
- Case key
- 101736
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 unstabilized landing approach in gusty wind conditions that resulted in a hard, bounced landing.
Findings · 3
NTSB’s coded findings. Those marked are part of the probable cause; the rest are factors or other findings. Under each, the cases with the same finding.
Sequence of events
The events NTSB coded, in order, by phase of flight. The defining event is the one that best describes the accident. Under each, the cases with the same event anywhere in their sequence.
Analysis
The student pilot stated that the airspeed was too fast on final approach and the glider landed hard and bounced several times before it came to a stop. The glider sustained substantial damage to the front and rear bottom of the fuselage and rudder. The pilot landed the glider on runway 36 with wind gusts to 18 knots.
Aircraft
- Registration
- N3981A
- Reported as
- Grob G102 (Club Astir)
- Category
- Glider
- Serial number
- 5610CB
- Built
- 1983
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Instructional · Part 91
- Airworthiness certificate
- Standard, Normal
- Departed
- JWY · Midlothian, TX
- Destination
- JWY · Midlothian, TX
- Airport
- JWY · Mid-Way Regional, runway 36, 6,500 × 100 ft, asphalt
- Equipment
- None
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
- 60
- Injuries
- Minor
- Certificate
- Commercial
- Airplane ratings
- Single-engine land
- Medical
- Class 2, With waivers/limitations
- Seat
- Single
- Restraint
- 4-point
- Flight hours
- 650 total · 10 in this make and model
Weather
- Conditions
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Wind
- 200° at 13 knots, gusting 18
- Visibility
- 10 statute miles
- Lowest ceiling
- None
- Temperature
- 95 °F, dew point 88 °F
- Altimeter
- 29.93 inHg
- Observed at
- JWY
Docket · 2
The files NTSB released with the investigation on July 2, 2021, on NTSB’s docket system: statements, records, photos and specialists’ reports. 455 KB in all.
FAA reports on this event · 1
The FAA’s own accident and incident reports, matched to the aircraft by N-number and date.