- Date
- July 20, 2011, 18:04 local (Jul 21, 2011, 00:04 UTC)
- Place
- Preston, ID
- Injuries
- 1 uninjured
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Phase of flight
- Enroute
- Aircraft
- N78ABSchleicher ASW-27
- Defining event
- Enroute-cruise: Loss of lift
- Weather
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Status
- Completed · report October 6, 2011
- Report
- Approved by Office Director
- NTSB office
- Western Pacific Region
- Parties
- Federal Aviation Administration
- FAA report
- 20110720015369A
- Case key
- 81182
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 glider's impact with crops during the off-airport 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 glider pilot reported that he was unable to find thermals that would provide suitable lift for continued flight. Subsequently, a field was selected that the pilot assessed was adequate for a successful landing. After overflying the field at 1,000 feet above ground level the pilot began his approach. The approach and touchdown were uneventful. During the landing roll, as the pilot deployed the speedbrakes and applied braking, the glider pitched forward and the left and right wings contacted crops that were located on either side of the glider's landing roll. The left wing engaged the crops more fully than the right wing and the glider yawed to the left before coming to rest. As a result, the empennage was substantially damaged. The pilot reported that there were no preimpact mechanical malfunctions or failures with the airframe that would have precluded normal flight.
Factual narrative
The glider pilot reported that he was unable to find thermals that would provide suitable lift for continued flight. Subsequently, a field was selected that the pilot assessed was adequate for a successful landing. After overflying the field at 1000 feet AGL the pilot began his approach. The approach and touchdown were uneventful. During the landing roll, as the pilot deployed the speedbrakes and applied braking to the wheel the glider pitched forward and the left and right wings contacted crops that were located on either side of the glider's landing roll. The left wing engaged the crops more fully than the right wing and the glider yawed to the left before coming to rest. As a result of the landing roll, the empennage was substantially damaged. The pilot reported that there were no preimpact mechanical malfunctions or failures with the airframe that would have precluded normal flight.
Aircraft
- Registration
- N78AB
- Reported as
- Schleicher ASW-27
- Category
- Glider
- Serial number
- 27207
- Airframe hours
- 532
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Personal · Part 91
- Operator
- Blackburn L Anderson
- Registered owner
- Blackburn L Anderson
- Airworthiness certificate
- Standard, Normal
- Last inspection
- Annual · May 24, 2011
- Departed
- LGU · Logan, UT
- Destination
- N/A · Preston, ID
- Flight plan
- Unknown
- Airport
- N/A
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
- 52
- Injuries
- None
- Certificate
- Private
- Last flight review
- May 21, 2011
- Seat
- Single
- Flight hours
- 1,153 total · 531 in this make and model · 1,136 as pilot in command · 24 in the last 90 days · 21 in the last 30 days · 3 in the last 24 hours
Weather
- Conditions
- Visual (VMC) · Day
- Wind
- 186° at 6 knots
- Visibility
- 10 statute miles
- Lowest ceiling
- None
- Temperature
- 88 °F, dew point 37 °F
- Altimeter
- 29.87 inHg
- Observed at
- KLGU, 14 nm away
Docket · 1
The files NTSB released with the investigation on July 28, 2011, on NTSB’s docket system: statements, records, photos and specialists’ reports. 612 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.