- Date
- October 5, 1986, 15:30 local (19:30 UTC)
- Place
- Erwinna, PA
- Injuries
- 1 uninjured
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Phase of flight
- Enroute
- Aircraft
- N12ZCEiriavion PIK-20E
- Weather
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Status
- Completed · report March 10, 1988
- Report
- Approved by Office Director
- FAA report
- 19861005048289A
- Case key
- 30543
From the NTSB’s public API. By law, NTSB reports can’t be used as evidence in lawsuits over the accident.
On this page
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
Flight encountered turbulence on descent below tree top level and when about 150 feet from the threshold a downdraft was encountered causing the aircraft to collide with the ground. The aircraft groundlooped when the left wing caught in the tall grass.
Aircraft
- Registration
- N12ZC
- Reported as
- Eiriavion PIK-20E
- Category
- Glider
- Serial number
- 20234
- Airframe hours
- 214
- Engine
- Rotax 501, 46 horsepower, reciprocating
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Personal · Part 91
- Registered owner
- Aircraft Instruments Co.
- Airworthiness certificate
- Standard, Normal
- Last inspection
- Annual · May 3, 1986 · 30 hours before
- Airport
- 9N1 · Vansant, runway 24, 3,000 × 120 ft, grass/turf
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
- 70
- Certificate
- Private
- Airplane ratings
- Single-engine land
- Instrument ratings
- Airplane
- Medical
- Class 3, Valid Medical--w/ waivers/lim
- Seat
- Front
- Flight hours
- 1,525 total · 113 in this make and model · 1,277 as pilot in command · 23 in the last 90 days · 1 in the last 24 hours
Weather
- Conditions
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Wind
- 340° at 8 knots
- Visibility
- 15 statute miles
- 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.