- Date
- April 6, 1991, 16:00 local (Apr 7, 1991, 00:00 UTC)
- Place
- Julian, CA
- Injuries
- 1 uninjured
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Phase of flight
- Takeoff
- Aircraft
- N31APSchleicher ASW-20
- Weather
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Status
- Completed · report March 24, 1993
- Report
- Approved by Office Director
- FAA report
- 19910406023219A
- Case key
- 27222
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 maintain control of his experimental glider during takeoff. A contributing factor was the pilot's encounter with gusty winds.
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 reported that he encountered a 10 to 15 knot gust of wind during the ground roll portion of his takeoff behind a tow plane. The pilot indicated that he was unable to prevent his glider from veering off the runway and colliding with bushes adjacent to the runway.
Aircraft
- Registration
- N31AP
- Reported as
- Schleicher ASW-20
- Category
- Glider
- Serial number
- 20369
- Engine
- unknown
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Personal · Part 91
- Operator
- Ronald G. Rutiz
- Airworthiness certificate
- Special, Experimental (Special)
- Last inspection
- Unknown · January 2, 2000
- Destination
- CL35 · Warner Springs, CA
- Airport
- 25L · Cordell Airstrip
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
- 45
- Certificate
- Private
- Flight hours
- 85 total · 25 as pilot in command · 20 in the last 90 days · 5 in the last 30 days
Weather
- Conditions
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Wind
- 270° at 10 knots, gusting 15
- Visibility
- 25 statute miles
- Lowest ceiling
- None
- Temperature
- 64 °F
FAA reports on this event · 1
The FAA’s own accident and incident reports, matched to the aircraft by N-number and date.
Other investigations on N31AP · 2
Matched to the same aircraft by N-number and date.