- Date
- December 16, 1995, 14:55 local (19:55 UTC)
- Place
- Jacksonville, FL
- Injuries
- 1 uninjured
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Phase of flight
- Enroute
- Aircraft
- N254BALet L-23
- Weather
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Status
- Completed · report April 1, 1996
- Report
- Approved by Office Director
- FAA report
- 19951216043649A
- Case key
- 37963
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 properly plan the flight.
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 stated that once released from the towplane he was unable to locate an adequate thermal and elected to land in a football field. During the landing roll the left wing struck a goalpost.
Factual narrative
On December 16, 1995, about 1455 eastern standard time, N254BA, a Blanic L-23 glider struck a goal post on landing at a football field in Jacksonville, Florida, while on a 14 CFR Part 91 personal flight. Visual meteorological conditions prevailed at the time and no flight plan was filed for the local flight. The pilot reported no injuries and the airplane was substantially damaged. The flight originated about 1415 the same day.
The pilot stated that he was unable to locate adequate thermals and elected to land in a football field. During the landing roll the left wing struck the goal post, damaging the leading edge, the spar, and the wing attachment fittings.
Aircraft
- Registration
- N254BA
- Reported as
- Let L-23
- Category
- Glider
- Serial number
- 917803
- Airframe hours
- 266
- Engine
- unknown
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Personal · Part 91
- Registered owner
- Gilbert R. Clarke
- Airworthiness certificate
- Standard, Normal
- Last inspection
- Annual · October 21, 1995
- Departed
- 23J · FL
- Airport
- 23J · Herlong Field
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
- 75
- Certificate
- Commercial
- Airplane ratings
- Multi-engine land, Single-engine land
- Instrument ratings
- Airplane
- Medical
- Unknown
- Seat
- Front
- Flight hours
- 5,004 total · 19 in this make and model · 3,958 as pilot in command · 1 in the last 90 days
Weather
- Conditions
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Wind
- 310° at 7 knots
- Visibility
- 7 statute miles
- Lowest ceiling
- None
- Temperature
- 77 °F, dew point 61 °F
- Altimeter
- 30.00 inHg
- Observed at
- JAX, 13 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.
Other investigations on N254BA · 1
Matched to the same aircraft by N-number and date.