- Date
- June 22, 2017, 13:00 local (20:00 UTC)
- Place
- Bishop, CA
- Injuries
- 1 minor
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Phase of flight
- Maneuvering
- Aircraft
- N21THSchempp-Hirth Discus 2B
- Defining event
- Maneuvering: Loss of control in flight
- Weather
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Status
- Completed · report October 17, 2017
- Report
- Approved by Office Director
- NTSB office
- General Aviation Accidents
- Parties
- FAA/ FSDO
- FAA report
- 20170622010859A
- Case key
- 95441
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 exceedance of the glider’s critical angle of attack while maneuvering over rising mountainous terrain, which resulted in an aerodynamic stall.
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 pilot of the glider reported that, while circling over rising mountainous terrain in search of thermals, he approached a "ridge right in front of me [him]." He added that, at that moment, "the [flight] controls went soft [and] I [he] could see that I [he] was [aerodynamically] stalled and plummeting toward the terrain and trees below." He further added that he "pointed the [glider's] nose down at a steep angle" to gain airspeed, but the glider impacted trees and steep terrain. The fuselage and both wings sustained substantial damage. The pilot reported that there were no preaccident mechanical malfunctions or failures with the glider that would have precluded normal operation.
Factual narrative
The pilot of the glider reported that, while circling over rising mountainous terrain in search of thermals, he approached a "ridge right in front of me [him]." He added that, at that moment, "the [flight] controls went soft [and] I [he] could see that I [he] was [aerodynamically] stalled and plummeting toward the terrain and trees below." He further added that, he "pointed the [glider's] nose down at a steep angle" to gain airspeed, but the glider impacted trees and steep terrain. The fuselage and both wings sustained substantial damage. The pilot reported that there were no preaccident mechanical malfunctions or failures with the glider that would have precluded normal operation.
Aircraft
- Registration
- N21TH
- Reported as
- Schempp-Hirth Discus 2B (NO SERIES)
- Category
- Glider
- Serial number
- 91
- Built
- 2001
- Engine
- none
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Personal · Part 91
- Operator
- Bay Area Soaring Associates Inc.
- Registered owner
- Bay Area Soaring Associates Inc.
- Airworthiness certificate
- Special, Experimental (Special)
- Last inspection
- Annual · March 11, 2017
- Departed
- BIH · Bishop, CA
- Destination
- BIH · Bishop, CA
- Equipment
- Handheld GPS, Satellite tracking device
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
- 59
- Injuries
- Minor
- Certificate
- Private
- Airplane ratings
- Single-engine land
- Last flight review
- February 5, 2017
- Seat
- Single
- Restraint
- 4-point
- Flight hours
- 394 total · 1 in this make and model · 374 as pilot in command · 22 in the last 90 days · 13 in the last 30 days · 3 in the last 24 hours
Weather
- Conditions
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Wind
- Variable at 4 knots
- Visibility
- 10 statute miles
- Lowest ceiling
- None
- Temperature
- 100 °F, dew point 28 °F
- Altimeter
- 29.90 inHg
- Observed at
- KBIH, 30 nm away
Docket · 3
The files NTSB released with the investigation on September 18, 2017, on NTSB’s docket system: statements, records, photos and specialists’ reports. 1.1 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.