- Date
- May 26, 1984, 12:10 local (18:10 UTC)
- Place
- Edgewood, NM
- Injuries
- 1 fatal, 1 serious
- Damage
- Destroyed
- Phase of flight
- Maneuvering
- Aircraft
- N48032Let L-13
- Weather
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Status
- Completed
- Report
- Approved by Office Director
- FAA report
- 19840526034809A
- Case key
- 16216
From the NTSB’s public API. By law, NTSB reports can’t be used as evidence in lawsuits over the accident.
On this page
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
Witnesses reported that the acft appeared to be too high, too fast, and in a crab as it approached the rwy. Over the rwy the glider was observed to roll into a right turn as the nose came up. Shortly thereafter the right wing struck 3 parked acft and collided with the terrain. During an interview on the evening of the accident the pilot stated that due to a high fast apch he attempted a right 270 degree turn in order to land to the north, just prior to the accident. In a written statement submitted on 6-25-84 the pilot refers to control inputs from the passenger in the front seat causing the abnormal approach and an uncommanded nose high attitude just before collision with the parked glider. The pilots logs reflect 3 hrs in this make and model glider. He stated that he had flown similiar gliders in the late 1960'S and had about 3.5 total hrs in the acft. He further reported to investigators that he was used to flying another glider in which 90 degree flaps allowed steeper approaches and more rapid descents.
Aircraft
- Registration
- N48032
- Reported as
- Let L-13
- Category
- Glider
- Serial number
- 026035
- Airframe hours
- 1,245
- Engine
- unknown
- Damage
- Destroyed
- Flight
- Part 91
- Operator
- New Mexico Soaring Ranch
- Registered owner
- Etchison G. Lill
- Airworthiness certificate
- Standard, Normal
- Last inspection
- 100 hour · May 10, 1984 · 9 hours before
- Departed
- Edgewood, NM
- Airport
- New Mexico Soaring Ranch, runway 9, 5,280 × 400 ft, grass/turf
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
- 56
- Certificate
- Commercial
- Airplane ratings
- Multi-engine land, Single-engine land
- Instrument ratings
- Airplane
- Medical
- Class 2, Valid Medical--w/ waivers/lim
- Seat
- Rear
- Flight hours
- 3,224 total · 4 in this make and model · 2,770 as pilot in command · 49 in the last 90 days · 15 in the last 30 days
Weather
- Conditions
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Wind
- 210° at 9 knots
- Visibility
- 50 statute miles
- Lowest ceiling
- None
- Temperature
- 79 °F, dew point 36 °F
- Altimeter
- 30.00 inHg
- Observed at
- ABQ, 27 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 N48032 · 1
Matched to the same aircraft by N-number and date.