Schempp-Hirth Nimbus-3DM accident near Alamogordo, NM
On May 24, 2001, a Schempp-Hirth Nimbus-3DM (glider) was involved in an accident near Alamogordo, NM. 2 people died. Damage to the aircraft: destroyed.
- Date
- May 24, 2001
- Place
- Alamogordo, NM
- Aircraft
- Schempp-Hirth Nimbus-3DM · Glider
- Injuries
- 2 fatal, 0 serious, 0 minor
- Damage
- Destroyed
- Position
- 32.760°N, 105.808°W
- NTSB ID
- 20010611X01142
NTSB summary
HISTORY OF FLIGHT On May 24, 2001, at 1216 mountain daylight time, a Schempp-Hirth Nimbus-3DM motorglider, N11ZQ, was destroyed when it impacted terrain while maneuvering near Alamogordo, New Mexico. The two private pilots were fatally injured. SAJ, LLC, of Powell, Wyoming, was operating the motorglider under Title 14 CFR Part 91. Visual meteorological conditions prevailed for the local long-duration flight that originated at approximately 1155. No flight plan had been filed. The two pilots had arrived from Europe 3 days before the accident to take part in a 2 week long world record soaring attempt. They had traveled to Albuquerque, New Mexico, on May 22, 2001, to convert their European flight credentials to American private pilot certificates. They flew their first flight together from Alamogordo on May 23, 2001. They had flown north to the vicinity of Santa Fe Ski Basin (Lake Peak), New Mexico, a distance of 660 kilometers (365 nautical miles [nm]), and were airborne for approximately 6 hours. On the morning of the accident, the two pilots had breakfast, and proceeded to the airport to preflight their motorglider. Edy Naef was sitting in the back seat and was the designated pilot-in-command (PIC) for the flight. His English was better and he had flown at Alamogordo the year before. Gilbert Gerbaud performed the takeoff on runway 21 (it is normal procedure for the front seat occupant to do the takeoff) and Edy Naef waved at the people on the ground as they lifted off. A friend of the two pilots and fellow motorglider pilot said that the motor is usually stowed at 1,000 met
Probable cause
The flight crew's inadequate in-flight planning to fly over the mesa with insufficient altitude. A contributing factor was the downdraft weather condition
More accidents in NM
- Gates Learjet 25D, Sep 5, 1993
- Piper PA-32-300, Dec 26, 1982
- Mitsubishi MU-2B-30, Jun 25, 1992
- Cessna 421C, Feb 11, 1985
- Beech 58, Mar 26, 1982
Browse: New Mexico · Schempp-Hirth aircraft
Source: NTSB aviation accident database (US government, public domain). Findings may be preliminary or later revised by the NTSB. Not a complete global record.
