- Date
- August 4, 2019, 13:00 local (20:00 UTC)
- Place
- Paulden, AZ
- Injuries
- 1 serious
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Phase of flight
- Landing
- Aircraft
- N37TSchleicher ASW 24
- Defining event
- Landing: Loss of control on ground
- Weather
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Status
- Completed · report February 11, 2020
- Report
- Approved by Office Director
- NTSB office
- General Aviation Accidents
- Parties
- FAA
- FAA report
- 20190804022979A
- Case key
- 100001
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 distraction due to the environment, his failure to lower the landing gear, and his subsequent failure to maintain directional control while landing the glider, which resulted in impact with a utility box.
Findings · 4
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, due to the unimproved airport environment blending in with the surrounding environment, he was unable to identify the runway and decided to land the glider on a dirt road. While concentrating on landing, he failed to extend the landing gear. On short final, he noticed that the landing gear was not extended, and while changing hands to extend the landing gear, the glider drifted right of the dirt road. Upon landing on the dirt road, the glider veered right and impacted a utility box. The glider sustained substantial damage to the fuselage and canopy. The pilot reported that there were no preaccident mechanical failures or malfunctions with the glider that would have precluded normal operation.
Factual narrative
The glider pilot reported that, due to the unimproved airport blending in with the surrounding environment, he was unable to identify the runway and decided to land on a dirt road. While concentrating on landing, he failed to extend the landing gear. On short finial, he noticed that the landing gear was not extended and while changing hands to extend the landing gear, the glider drifted right of the dirt road. Upon landing on the dirt road, the glider veered right and impacted a utility box. The glider sustained substantial damage to the fuselage and canopy. The pilot reported that there were no preaccident mechanical failures or malfunctions with the glider that would have precluded normal operation.
Aircraft
- Registration
- N37T
- Reported as
- Schleicher ASW 24 (Undesignat)
- Category
- Glider
- Serial number
- 24096
- Built
- 1990
- Airframe hours
- 1,314
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Personal · Part 91
- Airworthiness certificate
- Special, Experimental (Special)
- Last inspection
- Annual · April 6, 2019
- Departed
- AZ86 · Coyote Springs, AZ
- Destination
- AZ86 · Coyote Springs, AZ
- Airport
- AZ57 · Pilots Rest
- Equipment
- Handheld GPS
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
- 69
- Injuries
- Serious
- Certificates
- Commercial, Flight instructor
- Airplane ratings
- Single-engine land
- Instrument ratings
- Airplane
- Medical
- Class 3, With waivers/limitations
- Last flight review
- March 24, 2019
- Seat
- Front
- Flight hours
- 1,118 total · 3 in this make and model · 1,034 as pilot in command
Weather
- Conditions
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Wind
- 220° at 9 knots
- Visibility
- 10 statute miles
- Temperature
- 90 °F, dew point 50 °F
- Altimeter
- 30.20 inHg
- Observed at
- KPRC, 17 nm away
Docket · 3
The files NTSB released with the investigation on October 22, 2019, on NTSB’s docket system: statements, records, photos and specialists’ reports. 1.4 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.