- Date
- May 5, 2002, 12:10 local (16:10 UTC)
- Place
- Fairfield, PA
- Injuries
- 1 uninjured
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Phase of flight
- Approach
- Aircraft
- N5364GBurkhart Grob G103
- Weather
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Status
- Completed · report May 13, 2003
- Report
- Approved by Office Director
- Parties
- FAA
- FAA report
- 20020505018389A
- Case key
- 54639
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 attain proper runway alignment. A factor in the accident was the pilot's delay in retracting the spoilers.
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 pilot completed a left traffic pattern to land on runway 33L, one of two parallel grass runways. He overshot the runway, and decided to land on runway 33R. He subsequently left the spoilers deployed for too long, and descended faster than expected. He attempted to align the glider with the runway, but was unable to level the wings prior to the left wing tip striking the ground. When asked about the performance of the glider, the pilot stated, "The glider performed fine. It was responding as designed. Unfortunately, the inputs were not correct."
Factual narrative
On May 5, 2002, at 1210 eastern daylight time, a Burkhart Grob G103, N5364G, was substantially damaged during a collision with terrain while landing at the Mid-Atlantic Soaring Center (W73), Fairfield, Pennsylvania. The certificated private pilot was not injured. Visual meteorological conditions prevailed, and no flight plan was filed for the local personal flight, conducted under 14 CFR Part 91.
The pilot stated that he was making an approach to runway 33L, one of two parallel grass runways, during a left-to-right crosswind. As he turned from the base leg onto the final approach course, he realized that he overshot the intended runway, and decided to land on runway 33R.
The pilot further stated that during his attempt to align the glider with runway 33R, he left the spoilers deployed for too long, and descended faster than expected. The glider approached the touch-down point in a left-wing-low attitude, and the pilot was unable to level the wings before the left wing tip struck the ground. The glider rotated to the left, and the side load broke the tail boom.
The pilot flew four glider flights on the week before the accident, one earlier on the day of the accident. Two of the flights were in the Burkhart Grob G103. Prior to those two flights, he hadn't flown a G103 for several years.
When asked about the performance and handling of the glider, the pilot stated: "The glider performed fine. It was responding as designed. Unfortunately, the inputs were not correct."
The pilot held a private pilot certificate with a glider rating. He reported 440 glider flights, for a total of 214 hours of flight experience. His most recent biennial flight review was April 7, 2002.
The weather reported at Hagerstown, Maryland, 18 miles west of the accident site, included clear skies with variable winds at 3 knots.
Aircraft
- Registration
- N5364G
- Reported as
- Burkhart Grob G103
- Category
- Glider
- Serial number
- 3865
- Airframe hours
- 4,641
- Engine
- Aero Engines
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Personal · Part 91
- Registered owner
- Mid-Atlantic Soaring Association
- Airworthiness certificate
- Standard, Normal
- Last inspection
- Annual · December 18, 2001 · 24 hours before
- Departed
- W73 · Fairfield, PA
- Airport
- W73 · Mid-Atlantic Soaring Center, runway 33R, 2,700 × 50 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
- 62
- Injuries
- None
- Certificate
- Private
- Last flight review
- April 7, 2002
- Seat
- Front
- Flight hours
- 214 total · 166 as pilot in command · 4 in the last 90 days · 1 in the last 30 days · 1 in the last 24 hours
Weather
- Conditions
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Wind
- Variable at 3 knots
- Visibility
- 10 statute miles
- Lowest ceiling
- None
- Temperature
- 55 °F, dew point 45 °F
- Altimeter
- 30.32 inHg
- Observed at
- HGR, 18 nm away
Docket · 3
The files NTSB released with the investigation on April 1, 2003, on NTSB’s docket system: statements, records, photos and specialists’ reports. 719 KB 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.