- Date
- August 13, 1995, 16:55 local (20:55 UTC)
- Place
- Erwinna, PA
- Injuries
- 2 uninjured
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Phase of flight
- Approach
- Aircraft
- N5750SSchweizer SGS 2-33A
- Weather
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Status
- Completed · report October 27, 1995
- Report
- Approved by Office Director
- FAA report
- 19950813023149A
- Case key
- 39027
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 flight instructor's inadequate supervision during the final approach which resulted in the student flying a low approach and a subsequent collision with the trees. A factor relating to the accident was the student pilot's failure to maintain a proper glidepath.
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 flight instructor and student pilot had returned to the airport for landing after conducting airwork. During the approach the glider collided with trees. The instructor stated that he asked the student how the altitude looked for the approach, and '...he [the student] responded that we were high and immediately opened the dive brakes fully and put in a moderate slip. I said no....I pushed the dive brakes shut and told the student to take out the slip....I aimed for a notch in the trees, put in [a] crab to stop the side drift and fly along the line of the runway....both wingtips hit the trees....' Additionally, the instructor reported that there were no mechanical malfunctions or failures with the glider.
Factual narrative
On August 13, 1995 about 1655 eastern daylight time, a Schweizer SGS 2-33A, a glider, N5750S, was substantially damaged, when it collided with trees, during the final approach at the Vansant Airport, Erwinna, Pennsylvania. The flight instructor and student pilot were not injured. Visual meteorological conditions prevailed for the local flight operated by Soaring Society of Princeton University. There was no flight plan for the personal flight conducted under 14 CFR Part 91.
The flight instructor's stated that this was the second flight of the day with this student. The glider was towed to 3000 feet above ground level (AGL) and released. The student conducted airwork, and then returned to the airport for landing. The student entered the pattern on the crosswind leg at 1000 feet AGL. The instructor further stated:
...Entering base, it looked to me like we were on track for a normal landing. The dive brakes were still partially opened....We were not so high that we would need a slip in addition to dive brakes on final.
I had another look for power and glider traffic, saw that we were clear and asked the student how our altitude was. He responded that we were high and immediately opened the dive brakes fully and put in a moderate slip. I said "No,"....The variometer was showing between 800 and 900 feet per minute down. I pushed the dive brakes shut and told the student to take out the slip....
...I aimed for a notch in the trees, put in [a] crab to stop the side drift and fly along the line of the runway. Approaching the trees, the airspeed was down to 40 MPH, and there was no energy left to pull up the ten feet needed to clear. Both wingtips hit the trees. The glider turned sharply to the side....
Additionally, in the NTSB form 6120.1/2, the flight instructor reported that there were no mechanical malfunctions or failures with the glider.
Aircraft
- Registration
- N5750S
- Reported as
- Schweizer SGS 2-33A
- Category
- Glider
- Serial number
- 50
- Airframe hours
- 3,320
- Engine
- unknown
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Instructional · Part 91
- Registered owner
- Soaring Society Of Princeton
- Airworthiness certificate
- Standard, Normal
- Last inspection
- Annual · January 30, 1995 · 68 hours before
- Departed
- 9N1
- Airport
- 9N1 · Vansant, runway 23, 1,340 × 200 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
- 30
- Certificates
- Flight instructor, Commercial
- Medical
- Unknown, Unknown
- Seat
- Rear
- Flight hours
- 183 total · 107 in this make and model · 148 as pilot in command · 15 in the last 90 days · 4 in the last 30 days
Weather
- Conditions
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Wind
- 340° at 10 knots, gusting 13
- Visibility
- 15 statute miles
- Lowest ceiling
- None
- Temperature
- 90 °F, dew point 75 °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.