- Date
- December 3, 2005, 15:00 local (23:00 UTC)
- Place
- Llano, CA
- Injuries
- 2 uninjured
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Phase of flight
- Enroute
- Aircraft
- N4601MBurkhart Grob G 103 Twin II
- Weather
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Status
- Completed · report March 28, 2006
- Report
- Approved by Office Director
- Parties
- Federal Aviation Administration
- FAA report
- 20051203031529A
- Case key
- 63060
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 flight's encounter with downdrafts. A contributing factor was the unsuitable vegetation-covered mountainous terrain.
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
After encountering downdrafts, the glider was damaged when the pilot landed on unsuitable brush-covered mountainous terrain. The commercial pilot had planned to take the fare-paying passenger on a 45-minute-long sightseeing ride. Downdrafts were encountered after soaring for nearly 30 minutes. The pilot was unable to cross over a mountain ridge and to get to the airport. The pilot landed on the brush covered mountainside in an uphill direction and at minimum speed.
Factual narrative
On December 3, 2005, about 1500 Pacific standard time, a Burkhart Grob, G 103 Twin II, N4601M, landed on a mountainside near Llano, California. The glider was substantially damaged upon impacting bushes. Neither the commercial certificated pilot nor passenger was injured during the revenue sightseeing introductory flight. The Great Western Soaring School, in Llano, operated the glider. The flight was performed under the provisions of 14 CFR Part 91. Visual meteorological conditions prevailed, and no flight plan was filed. The flight originated from Llano about 1430.
The pilot reported that the planned 45-minute-long ride for the passenger had been uneventful until encountering strong downdrafts. The glider lost altitude while the pilot searched for an area where less sink was evident. The pilot reported that she was unable to cross back over a mountain ridge and glide to a suitable landing site. The pilot landed in an uphill direction, touching down at a minimum airspeed.
The glider appeared undamaged when the pilot initially viewed it. Substantial structural airframe damage was noted following the glider's recovery from the brush-covered mountainside, and the National Transportation Safety Board was notified of the accident.
Aircraft
- Registration
- N4601M
- Reported as
- Burkhart Grob G 103 Twin II
- Category
- Glider
- Serial number
- 3831
- Engine
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Other work use · Part 91
- Operator
- Great Western Soaring School
- Registered owner
- Frederick J. Robinson
- Airworthiness certificate
- Standard, Normal
- Departed
- 46CN · Llano, CA
- Destination
- 46CN · Llano, CA
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
- 37
- Injuries
- None
- Certificate
- Commercial
- Last flight review
- June 1, 2004
- Flight hours
- 261 total · 230 in this make and model · 162 as pilot in command · 30 in the last 90 days · 16 in the last 30 days
Weather
- Conditions
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Wind
- 300° at 15 knots
- Visibility
- 20 statute miles
- Lowest ceiling
- None
- Temperature
- 50 °F
FAA reports on this event · 1
The FAA’s own accident and incident reports, matched to the aircraft by N-number and date.