Schleicher ASW-20 accident near Reno, NV
On May 8, 2004, a Schleicher ASW-20 (glider) was involved in an accident near Reno, NV. 1 person died. Damage to the aircraft: destroyed.
- Date
- May 8, 2004
- Place
- Reno, NV
- Aircraft
- Schleicher ASW-20 · Glider
- Injuries
- 1 fatal, 0 serious, 0 minor
- Damage
- Destroyed
- Position
- 39.933°N, 119.683°W
- NTSB ID
- 20040511X00591
NTSB summary
HISTORY OF FLIGHT On May 8, 2004, at 1600 Pacific daylight time, a Schleicher ASW-20, N126PS, collided with terrain during an uncontrolled descent following separation of the towrope after takeoff at the Air Sailing Gliderport, 21 miles north of Reno, Nevada. The private pilot-owner was operating the glider on a local flight under the provisions of 14 CFR Part 91. The glider pilot was fatally injured, and the glider was destroyed. Visual meteorological conditions prevailed, and no flight plan had been filed. The tow plane pilot reported in a written statement that he was towing the glider on the runway heading of 210 degrees and was about 300 feet above ground level (agl) when he felt the towline break. He initiated a left turn, towards a heading of 180 degrees, and looked over his left shoulder to observe the glider about 100 yards behind him. The glider was in a left turn with its heading passing through 030 degrees when the right wing suddenly dropped downwards and the plane appeared to descend vertically, nose down. The glider made about 1/2 a clockwise rotation, nose down, before it impacted the desert. PERSONNEL INFORMATION A review of Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) records from Oklahoma City, Oklahoma, revealed that the pilot held a private pilot certificate issued on June 29, 1996, with ratings for single engine land and glider aero tow. The pilot held a second-class medical certificate issued on November 19, 2002. It had the limitation that the pilot must wear corrective lenses. Examination of the pilot's logbook revealed that he had 917.6 hours of total fli
Probable cause
the pilot's failure to maintain an adequate airspeed margin while performing a return to runway maneuver, which led to a stall and spin. Factors in the accident were: 1) the deteriorated condition of the glider towrope, which resulted in towrope failure during a critical phase of the tow; 2) the duct tape covering over the abraided portion of the failed rope end that made inspection of the rope di
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Browse: Nevada · Schleicher 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.
