- Date
- August 24, 2025, 12:50 local (17:50 UTC)
- Place
- Highland, IL
- Injuries
- 1 uninjured
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Phase of flight
- Takeoff
- Aircraft
- N424BGBurkhart Grob Flugzeugbau G102 Club Astir Iiib
- Defining event
- Takeoff: Loss of control on ground
- Weather
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Status
- Completed · report October 2, 2025
- Report
- Approved by Office Director
- Investigation class
- Class 4 - Basic report with no Prelim publish
- NTSB office
- Central Region
- Parties
- FAA - STL FSDO
- FAA report
- 20250824016769A
- Case key
- 200850
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 failure to maintain directional control during takeoff which resulted in a collision with a parked vehicle.
Findings · 2
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 pilot reported that the glider was preparing to take off and was connected to a tow airplane. As the tow began, the glider began to drift to the left due to a crosswind, and the glider moved out of position behind the towplane. As the tow progressed the glider’s left wing dropped to the ground, and the glider began to ground loop. The pilot released from the towplane and the right wing of the glider struck a parked golf cart. The glider received substantial damage to the right wing. The pilot stated that there were no mechanical anomalies with the glider that would have precluded normal operations.
Aircraft
- Registration
- N424BG
- Reported as
- Burkhart Grob Flugzeugbau G102 Club Astir Iiib
- Category
- Glider
- Serial number
- 5548CB
- Built
- 1981
- Airframe hours
- 4,175
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Personal · Part 91
- Operator
- St Louis Soaring Association Inc
- Registered owner
- St Louis Soaring Association Inc
- Airworthiness certificate
- Standard, Normal
- Last inspection
- Annual · August 10, 2025
- Airport
- H07 · Highland-Winet, runway 18/36, 2,200 × 100 ft, grass/turf
- 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
- 67
- Injuries
- None
- Certificate
- Private
- Last flight review
- July 14, 2024
- Seat
- Single
- Restraint
- 4-point
- Flight hours
- 58 total · 10 in this make and model · 58 as pilot in command · 2 in the last 90 days · 1 in the last 30 days · 0 in the last 24 hours
Weather
- Conditions
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Wind
- 310° at 13 knots
- Visibility
- 10 statute miles
- Temperature
- 79 °F, dew point 57 °F
- Altimeter
- 30.04 inHg
- Observed at
- KBLV, 17 nm away
- METAR
- METAR KBLV 241755Z AUTO 31013KT 10SM FEW045 26/14 A3004 RMK AO2 SLP172 T02590140 10259 20154 58009=
Docket · 2
The files NTSB released with the investigation on October 2, 2025, on NTSB’s docket system: statements, records, photos and specialists’ reports. 2.7 MB 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.
Other investigations on N424BG · 2
Matched to the same aircraft by N-number and date.