- Date
- July 9, 2005, 12:47 local (18:47 UTC)
- Place
- Moriarty, NM
- Injuries
- 2 uninjured
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Phase of flight
- Landing
- Aircraft
- N916GGrob G103
- Weather
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Status
- Completed · report December 20, 2005
- Report
- Approved by Office Director
- Parties
- FAA Flight Standards District Office
- FAA report
- 20050709014079A
- Case key
- 61931
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 glider pilot's intentional tow release at too low an altitude when he erroneously perceived the tow plane was about to crash. A contributing factor was the unsuitable terrain on which to make a landing.
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 tow plane pilot said that the winds were 5 to 15 knots "from the west or northwest" and that "25 knot gusts were not uncommon." During the takeoff roll, he saw an "extreme dust devil right in front [of the airplane]" and "paper-sized pieces of cardboard spinning sharply." He momentarily lost control of the tow plane, then noticed the glider was no longer in tow. He flew an abbreviated traffic pattern and landed. It was then that he noticed his propeller had sustained a ground strike. The glider pilot said that after an uneventful aero tow, the tow plane started "pulling up and then touched back down." He said the "left wing [was] low and [the] tail high and right.." He then saw a "puff of smoke" and "couldn't tell if the tow plane had crashed, or was about to crash." He elected to release and perform an emergency landing from an altitude of 75 to 100 feet. After turning 90 degrees to the right, the glider was "close to the ground" so the pilot "leveled the wings and tried to flare." The glider impacted terrain and ground looped, causing substantial damage. Both pilots agreed that the "puff of smoke" seen by the glider pilot was actually dust thrown in the air during the tow plane's propeller strike.
Factual narrative
On July 9, 2005, at 1247 mountain daylight time, a Grob G103, N916G, operated by the Albuquerque Soaring Club and piloted by a private pilot, was substantially damaged when it impacted terrain during an emergency landing at Moriarty Airport, Moriarty, New Mexico. Visual meteorological conditions prevailed at the time of the accident. The local personal flight was being conducted under Title 14 CFR Part 91 without a flight plan. The pilot and passenger were not injured. The flight was originating at the time of the accident.
The tow plane pilot said that the winds were 5 to 15 knots "from the west or northwest" and that "25 knot gusts were not uncommon." During the takeoff roll, he saw an "extreme dust devil right in front [of the airplane]" and "paper-sized pieces of cardboard spinning sharply." He momentarily lost control of the tow plane, then noticed the glider was no longer in tow. He flew an abbreviated traffic pattern and landed. It was then that he noticed his propeller had sustained a ground strike.
The glider pilot said that after an uneventful aero tow, the tow plane started "pulling up and then touched back down." He said the "left wing [was] low and [the] tail high and right.." He then saw a "puff of smoke" and "couldn't tell if the tow plane had crashed, or was about to crash." He elected to release and perform an emergency landing from an altitude of 75 to 100 feet. After turning 90 degrees to the right, the glider was "close to the ground" so the pilot "leveled the wings and tried to flare." The glider impacted terrain and ground looped. A pilot-rated witness said that the pilot "appeared to be attempting a downwind landing when the right wingtip impacted the ground and broke off the glider." Post-accident examination revealed a severed right wing and a severed fuselage aft of the cockpit.
Both pilots agreed that the "puff of smoke" seen by the glider pilot was actually dust thrown in the air during the tow plane's propeller strike.
Aircraft
- Registration
- N916G
- Reported as
- Grob G103
- Category
- Glider
- Serial number
- 3753
- Airframe hours
- 2,846
- Engine
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Glider tow · Part 91
- Registered owner
- Albuquerque Soaring CLub
- Airworthiness certificate
- Standard, Normal
- Last inspection
- Annual · January 1, 2005
- Departed
- 0E0 · Moriarty, NM
- Destination
- 0E0 · Moriarty, NM
- Airport
- 0E0 · Moriarty Airport, runway 260, 7,700 × 75 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
- 32
- Injuries
- None
- Certificate
- Private
- Last flight review
- March 1, 2005
- Seat
- Front
- Flight hours
- 335 total · 93 in this make and model · 308 as pilot in command · 4 in the last 90 days · 1 in the last 30 days
Weather
- Conditions
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Wind
- 0° at 6 knots, gusting 14
- Visibility
- 10 statute miles
- Lowest ceiling
- None
- Temperature
- 84 °F, dew point 36 °F
- Altimeter
- 30.23 inHg
- Observed at
- CQC, 17 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.
Other investigations on N916G · 1
Matched to the same aircraft by N-number and date.