- Date
- February 22, 1998, 17:15 local (Feb 23, 1998, 01:15 UTC)
- Place
- Williams, CA
- Injuries
- 1 uninjured
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Phase of flight
- Approach
- Aircraft
- N948BSchempp-Hirth VENTUS-B
- Weather
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Status
- Completed · report February 15, 2001
- Report
- Approved by Office Director
- FAA report
- 19980222001659A
- Case key
- 30036
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 an adequate clearance from the oil drilling rig due to his attention being diverted inside the cockpit in order the secure the landing gear control.
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 there was a drilling rig parked approximately 30 to 40 feet from the end of the runway and he was aware of the location of the rig before takeoff. He further stated that he usually placed a wooden wedge behind the landing gear handle to secure it in place before landing, but while on final he noticed that he had not yet secured it. While he attempted to secure it in place, he noticed that the aircraft had a very great rate of descent. He then 'concentrated in controlling the direction of the aircraft to land properly on the runway, looking ahead and losing reference of the drilling rig.' The right wingtip then hit the upper portion of the rig and approximately 3 to 4 feet of the wing separated from the aircraft, and the nose of the glider hit the ground. The glider spun to the right approximately 180 degrees before coming to a complete stop.
Factual narrative
On February 22, 1998, at 1715 hours Pacific standard time, a Schempp-Hirth Ventus-B glider, N948B, collided with a drilling rig while turning from left base to final at the Williams, California, airport. The aircraft sustained substantial damage and there was minor damage to the rig. The private pilot, the sole occupant, was not injured. Visual meteorological conditions prevailed for the personal flight and no flight plan was filed. The local flight initiated at 1230 and was terminating at the time of the accident.
The pilot reported that there was a drilling rig parked approximately 30 to 40 feet from the end of the runway and he was aware of the location of the rig before takeoff. He further stated that he usually placed a wooden wedge behind the landing gear handle to secure it in place before landing, but while on final he noticed that he had not yet secured it. While he attempted to secure it in place, he noticed that the aircraft had a "very great rate of descent." He then "concentrated in controlling the direction of the aircraft to land properly on the runway, looking ahead and losing reference of the drilling rig." The right wingtip then hit the upper portion of the rig and approximately 3 to 4 feet of the wing separated from the aircraft, and the nose of the glider hit the ground. The glider spun to the right approximately 180 degrees before coming to a complete stop.
Aircraft
- Registration
- N948B
- Reported as
- Schempp-Hirth VENTUS-B
- Category
- Glider
- Serial number
- 56
- Airframe hours
- 990
- Engine
- unknown
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Personal · Part 91
- Registered owner
- Sergio Colacevich
- Airworthiness certificate
- Special, Experimental (Special)
- Last inspection
- Annual · March 15, 1997 · 121 hours before
- Departed
- Q12
- Airport
- Q12 · Williams, runway 16, 2,500 × 25 ft, asphalt
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
- 59
- Certificate
- Private
- Seat
- Center
- Flight hours
- 1,509 total · 502 in this make and model · 1,489 as pilot in command · 9 in the last 90 days · 8 in the last 30 days · 4 in the last 24 hours
Weather
- Conditions
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Wind
- 170° at 8 knots
- Visibility
- 20 statute miles
- Lowest ceiling
- None
- Temperature
- 50 °F
- Altimeter
- 29.00 inHg
FAA reports on this event · 1
The FAA’s own accident and incident reports, matched to the aircraft by N-number and date.