- Date
- June 17, 2000, 14:30 local (21:30 UTC)
- Place
- Coleville, CA
- Injuries
- 1 uninjured
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Phase of flight
- Initial climb
- Aircraft
- N59WMSchleicher AS20
- Weather
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Status
- Completed · report November 1, 2001
- Report
- Approved by Office Director
- FAA report
- 20000617012129A
- Case key
- 49483
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 tow plane pilot's inadequate airplane performance calculations.
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 commercial glider pilot reported that after departing Truckee-Tahoe airport by tow, he lost lift and decided to make a precautionary landing in a field. Upon learning that there was a soaring club located nearby, he made contact with the club and requested an airplane tow out of the field. During the tow operation the tow plane collided with a fence. The sailplane released, overflew the tow plane by 2 to 4 feet, traveled across a road, and collided with another fence.
Factual narrative
On June 17, 2000, about 1430 hours Pacific daylight time, a Schleicher AS20, N59WM, collided with a fence on an aero tow takeoff from a dirt field near Coleville, California. The sailplane, owned and operated by the commercial pilot under 14 CFR Part 91, sustained substantial damage. The commercial glider pilot, the sole occupant, was not injured. Visual meteorological conditions existed for the personal flight and no flight plan was filed. The cross-country recreational flight originated from Truckee-Tahoe, California, airport at 1230.
After the tow takeoff from Truckee-Tahoe airport, the pilot reported that he lost lift and decided to make a precautionary landing in a field. Upon learning that there was a soaring club located nearby, he made contact with the club and requested an airplane tow out of the field. During the takeoff the tow plane collided with a fence. The sailplane released, overflew the tow plane by 2 to 4 feet, traveled across a road, and collided with another fence.
Aircraft
- Registration
- N59WM
- Reported as
- Schleicher AS20
- Category
- Glider
- Serial number
- 20274
- Airframe hours
- 1,024
- Engine
- unknown
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Personal · Part 91
- Registered owner
- James Darke
- Airworthiness certificate
- Special, Experimental (Special)
- Last inspection
- Annual · January 7, 2000 · 27 hours before
- Departed
- NONE
- Destination
- TRK · Truckee, CA
Flight crew
As NTSB recorded them. NTSB leaves out names.
- Role
- Pilot
- Age
- 57
- Certificates
- Flight instructor, Commercial
- Seat
- Center
- Flight hours
- 1,591 total · 1,520 as pilot in command · 38 in the last 90 days · 24 in the last 30 days · 2 in the last 24 hours
Weather
- Conditions
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Wind
- 50° at 7 knots
- Visibility
- 10 statute miles
- Lowest ceiling
- 0 ft
- Temperature
- 167 °F, dew point 77 °F
- Altimeter
- 29.00 inHg
- Observed at
- RNO, 30 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.