- Date
- May 6, 1992, 13:45 local (20:45 UTC)
- Place
- Hemet, CA
- Injuries
- 1 uninjured
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Phase of flight
- Enroute
- Aircraft
- N3619USchweizer 1-36
- Weather
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Status
- Completed · report August 31, 1993
- Report
- Approved by Office Director
- FAA report
- 19920506029669A
- Case key
- 27679
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 inadvertent selection of unsuitable terrain for the precautionary landing. A factor in the accident was his failure to obtain a preflight weather briefing.
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 said he was soaring in a clear area about 5 miles from the airport when heavy rain showers suddenly arose over the airport. The clouds began moving toward the pilot's location and he headed back toward the airport. He said that heavy rain obscured the airport and rather than attempt to find the airport in bad weather conditions he elected to make an off airport landing. The pilot noted that after he was committed to the selected field, he discovered that the terrain was rough. The aircraft landed in the rough field and incurred substantial damage. The pilot stated that he did not obtain a preflight weather briefing.
Aircraft
- Registration
- N3619U
- Reported as
- Schweizer 1-36
- Category
- Glider
- Serial number
- 29
- Engine
- unknown
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Personal · Part 91
- Operator
- Orange County Soaring Assoc
- Registered owner
- Orange County Soaring Assoc
- Airworthiness certificate
- Standard, Normal
- Last inspection
- Annual · January 2, 2000
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
- 67
- Certificates
- Commercial, Flight instructor
- Airplane ratings
- Multi-engine land, Single-engine land, Single-engine sea
- Instrument ratings
- Airplane
- Medical
- Class 2, Valid Medical--w/ waivers/lim
- Seat
- Left
- Flight hours
- 5,344 total · 2 in this make and model · 5,292 as pilot in command · 14 in the last 90 days · 6 in the last 30 days · 1 in the last 24 hours
Weather
- Conditions
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Visibility
- 1 statute miles
- Lowest ceiling
- 4,000 ft overcast
- Temperature
- 70 °F
FAA reports on this event · 1
The FAA’s own accident and incident reports, matched to the aircraft by N-number and date.