- Date
- August 22, 2010, 15:30 local (22:30 UTC)
- Place
- Minden, NV
- Injuries
- 1 uninjured
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Phase of flight
- Landing
- Aircraft
- N794GBurkhart Grob G-103A
- Defining event
- Landing-flare/touchdown: Hard landing
- Weather
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Status
- Completed · report March 16, 2011
- Report
- Approved by Office Director
- NTSB office
- Western Pacific Region
- Parties
- Federal Aviation Administration FSDO
- FAA report
- 20100822042189A
- Case key
- 77050
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 inadequate flare and bounced landing recovery technique that resulted in a hard landing.
Findings · 2
NTSB’s coded findings. Those marked are part of the probable cause; the rest are factors or other findings. Under each, the cases with the same finding.
Sequence of events
The events NTSB coded, in order, by phase of flight. The defining event is the one that best describes the accident. Under each, the cases with the same event anywhere in their sequence.
Analysis
The pilot completed a one-hour local flight and entered the traffic pattern for the destination airport. He decided to maneuver the glider with a higher airspeed because of strong gusty wind and turbulence. With use of the airbrakes, he landed about 300 feet down the runway. The nosewheel touched down first and the glider bounced; then the tailwheel touched down and the glider bounced again. This cycle repeated twice despite the pilot’s attempts to control it with elevator. The pilot was not aware that the glider sustained substantial damage to the empennage until he exited the cockpit.
Factual narrative
The pilot completed a 1-hour local flight, and entered right traffic on runway 30. He increased his speed because of strong gusty winds and turbulence. He worked the airbrakes and landed about 300 feet down the runway. The nose wheel touched down first, and the glider bounced; then the tail wheel touched down and the glider bounced. This cycle repeated twice despite the pilot’s attempts to control it with elevator. The rollout was normal. The pilot was not aware that the glider sustained substantial damage to the empennage until he exited the cockpit.
Aircraft
- Registration
- N794G
- Reported as
- Burkhart Grob G-103A
- Category
- Glider
- Serial number
- 34007-K-240
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Personal · Part 91
- Operator
- Soar Minden, Inc.
- Registered owner
- Soar Minden, Inc.
- Airworthiness certificate
- Standard, Normal
- Departed
- MEV · Minden, NV
- Destination
- MEV · Minden, NV
- Airport
- MEV · Minden-Tahoe, runway 30, 5,300 × 75 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
- 75
- Injuries
- None
- Certificate
- Private
- Last flight review
- July 16, 2010
- Seat
- Center
- Flight hours
- 439 total · 2 in this make and model · 11 in the last 90 days · 5 in the last 30 days · 2 in the last 24 hours
Weather
- Conditions
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Wind
- 270° at 6 knots, gusting 17
- Visibility
- 10 statute miles
- Lowest ceiling
- None
- Temperature
- 79 °F, dew point 19 °F
- Altimeter
- 30.10 inHg
- Observed at
- KRNO
Docket · 1
The files NTSB released with the investigation on September 29, 2010, on NTSB’s docket system: statements, records, photos and specialists’ reports. 447 KB in all.
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 N794G · 1
Matched to the same aircraft by N-number and date.