# NTSB WPR12CA288: Dg-Flugzeugbau DG-500MB, N505JL, Richland, WA, June 24, 2012

- Type: NTSB accident investigation
- Classification: Accident · Minor injuries · Data collection · Final report
- Date: June 24, 2012, 14:25 local (21:25 UTC)
- Place: Richland, WA
- Coordinates: 46.305557, -119.304168 (estimated)
- Nearby events: https://openairdocs.org/map.md?lat=46.3056&lon=-119.3042&mi=10
- Phase of flight: [Approach](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb-phases/500) (OpenAirDocs' grouping)
- Defining event: [Approach-VFR pattern final: Loss of lift](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb-events/500)
- Highest injury: Minor injuries
- Injuries: 1 minor
- Status: Completed, report October 4, 2012
- Report: Approved by Office Director
- NTSB office: Western Pacific Region
- Parties: Federal Aviation Administration
- NTSB case key (mKey): 84168
- NTSB case page: https://web.ntsb.gov/investigations/?ntsbnumber=WPR12CA288
- NTSB report (PDF, downloads): https://data.ntsb.gov/carol-repgen/api/Aviation/ReportMain/GenerateNewestReport/84168/pdf
- NTSB docket: https://data.ntsb.gov/Docket?ProjectID=84168
- Page: https://openairdocs.org/ntsb/WPR12CA288

## Probable cause

The failure of the spoilers to retract because the right wing spoiler’s lower plate became jammed, which resulted in the glider not having enough lift to make it to the runway surface.

## Findings

NTSB's coded findings; those marked are part of the probable cause.

- [Wing structure: spoilers](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb-findings/01035755): Aircraft › Aircraft structures · Unintentional use/operation (probable cause); cases with it: [Dg-Flugzeugbau DG-500MB, 1 case](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb-findings/01035755/cases.md?model=3802554), [All aircraft, 8 cases](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb-findings/01035755/cases.md)
- [Wing structure: spoilers](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb-findings/01035755): Aircraft › Aircraft structures · Fatigue/wear/corrosion; cases with it: [Dg-Flugzeugbau DG-500MB, 1 case](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb-findings/01035755/cases.md?model=3802554), [All aircraft, 8 cases](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb-findings/01035755/cases.md)

## Sequence of events

The events NTSB coded, in order, by phase of flight. The defining event best describes what happened.

- [Approach-VFR pattern final: Loss of lift](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb-events/500) (defining event); cases with it: [Dg-Flugzeugbau DG-500MB, 1 case](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb-events/500/sequence.md?model=3802554), [All aircraft, 252 cases](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb-events/500/sequence.md)

## Analysis

In a written statement, the pilot reported that the accident flight was his second flight of the day. After conducting a series of practice maneuvers, he was returning to the airport. The pilot entered a right traffic pattern and configured the glider for landing. With the landing gear extended and the flaps set at 10 degrees, he opened and tested the spoilers. While on the base leg of the traffic pattern, he noticed that the glider was low, and, as he maneuvered onto final approach, he closed the spoilers (forward activation of the lever). The glider’s sink rate was excessive and he observed that the spoilers visually appeared to be deployed although the control lever was in the full-forward (closed) position. He manipulated the lever back and forth, which had no effect on the spoiler position. The glider impacted railroad tracks about 1,000 feet from the approach end of the runway and sustained substantial damage to the fuselage and wings in the accident sequence. A postaccident examination of the glider revealed that the right wing spoiler’s lower plate appeared to have been rubbing the aft spoiler bay wall until it scraped off the resin. It appeared to have scraped enough material off that it caught on a fabric seam (once sealed in the resin) and would not retract. In other words, the spoiler’s lower plate would not push past the catch due to the exposed fabric edge. The location of the scrape marks and the fabric seam put the spoilers at half extension, which is consistent with the lack of performance the pilot reported. The left wing spoiler’s lower plate bushings were tight, with no play.

## Factual narrative

In a written statement, the pilot reported that the accident flight was his second flight of the day. After conducting a series of practice maneuvers, he was returning back to the airport. The pilot entered a right traffic pattern and configured the glider for landing. With the landing gear extended and the flaps set at 10 degrees, he opened/tested the spoilers. While on the base leg of the traffic pattern, he noticed the glider was low, and as he maneuvered onto final approach, he closed the spoilers (forward activation of the lever). The glider’s sink rate was excessive and he observed that the spoilers visually appeared to be deployed although the control lever was in the full-forward (closed) position. He manipulated the lever back and forth, which had no effect on the spoiler position. The glider impacted railroad tracks about 1,000 feet from the approach end of the runway and sustained substantial damage to the fuselage and wings in the accident sequence. The pilot opined that the accident was a result of him mixing up the spoiler lever with the flap lever. He thought he was wrongly activating the flap control, not the spoiler control, which were in close proximity to one another. This led to the spoilers remaining deployed during the final approach. An inspector from the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) performed a post accident examination of the glider. He stated that the right wing spoiler’s lower plate appeared to have been rubbing the aft spoiler bay wall until it scraped off the resin. It appeared to have scrapped enough material that it caught on a fabric seam (once sealed in the resin) and would not retract (would not push past the catch due to the exposed fabric edge. The location of the scrape marks and the fabric seam the spoiler caught on put the spoilers at half extension, which the FAA inspector thought was consistent with the lack of performance the pilot reported. The left wing spoiler’s lower plate bushings were tight, with no play.

## Aircraft

- Registration: [N505JL](https://openairdocs.org/aircraft/N505JL), registered now, S/N 5E-187B3, built 1999 (OpenAirDocs)
- Reported make and model: DG-FLUGZEUGBAU GMBH DG-500MB
- Registry model: [Dg-Flugzeugbau DG-500MB](https://openairdocs.org/model/dg-flugzeugbau-dg-500mb) (registry code 3802554) (OpenAirDocs)
- Registry engine: [Amateur-built UNKNOWN ENG](https://openairdocs.org/engine/amateur-built-unknown-eng) (registry code 99999) (OpenAirDocs)
- Category: Glider
- Serial number: 5E-187B3
- Airframe hours: 878
- Engines: Technoflug KS-1G-160-R-1 64 horsepower reciprocating
- Damage: Substantial damage
- Flight: Personal, Part 91
- Operator: Sls Partnership Ltd
- Registered owner: Sls Partnership Ltd
- Airworthiness certificate: Special, Experimental (Special)
- Last inspection: Annual, November 22, 2011
- Departed: RLD, Richland, WA
- Destination: RLD, Richland, WA
- Flight plan: Unknown
- Airport: RLD, Richland Airport, runway 26, 4,000 × 100 ft, asphalt

## Flight crew

As NTSB recorded them. NTSB leaves out names.

- Pilot; age 75; injuries: minor; commercial; flight hours: 1,303 total, 311 in this make and model

## Weather

- Conditions: Visual (VMC), Day
- Wind: 210° at 10 knots
- Visibility: 10 statute miles
- Lowest ceiling: none
- Temperature: 79 °F

## FAA reports on this event (1)

The FAA's own accident and incident reports, matched to the aircraft by N-number and date (OpenAirDocs).

- [Accident 20120624012789A](https://openairdocs.org/incident/20120624012789A), Jun 24, 2012: Dg-Flugzeugbau Gmbh DG-500MB, Richland, WA, Substantial damage. [privacy data omitted] Was completing his 90 day currency in the motor glider and on his final approach to runway 26 with the engine stowed at Richland, WA…

## Docket (2 files)

The files NTSB released with the investigation on August 2, 2012, on NTSB's docket system: https://data.ntsb.gov/Docket?ProjectID=84168. 840 KB in all.

- Pilot/Operator Aircraft Accident Report, NTSB Form 6120.1 (item 1, .PDF, 827 KB): https://data.ntsb.gov/Docket/Document/docBLOB?ID=40374459&FileExtension=.PDF&FileName=Pilot%2FOperator%20Aircraft%20Accident%20Report,%20NTSB%20Form%206120.1-Redacted.PDF
- Federal Aviation Administration Inspector Statement (item 2, .PDF, 13 KB): https://data.ntsb.gov/Docket/Document/docBLOB?ID=40373702&FileExtension=.PDF&FileName=Federal%20Aviation%20Administration%20Inspector%20Statement-Master.PDF

From the NTSB's public API. Aircraft are matched to registry aircraft by N-number and event date, checked against the reported serial number, make and model; the registry's history has gaps, so older matches can be wrong. Compare the reported make and model.

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