Rolladen Schneider LS4 accident near Moriarty, NM
On June 29, 2019, a Rolladen Schneider LS4 (glider) was involved in an accident near Moriarty, NM. 1 person died. Damage to the aircraft: minor.
- Date
- June 29, 2019
- Place
- Moriarty, NM
- Aircraft
- Rolladen Schneider LS4 · Glider
- Injuries
- 1 fatal, 0 serious, 0 minor
- Damage
- Minor
- Position
- 34.838°N, 106.114°W
- NTSB ID
- 20190630X84751
Official records · WPR19LA181
- Public docket: reports, statements and exhibits from the investigation
NTSB summary
HISTORY OF FLIGHTOn June 29, 2019, about 1511 mountain daylight time, a Rolladen-Schneider LS-4A experimental glider, sustained minor damage when it was involved in an accident near Moriarty, New Mexico. The pilot was fatally injured. The glider was operated as a Title 14 Code of Federal Regulations Part 91 personal flight. The glider was located in a field about 10 miles south of Moriarty Municipal Airport (0E0), Moriarty, New Mexico. A Torrance County Sheriff’s Deputy reported that the deceased pilot was found strapped in his seat with the canopy closed and was observed to have sustained only minor external injuries. According to the co-owner of the glider, the accident flight was planned to be a local flight. The pilot said that he would fly toward Santa Fe. However, as there were some “built ups” in that direction that the pilot was aware of, which may have caused him to change his route. He also stated the glider had no mechanical issues during previous flights and was serviced with oxygen before the accident flight. The accident glider was equipped with an onboard global positioning system (GPS) device that captured the accident flight. The data started with the glider taking off at 1941. The flight track was generally to the southwest and just east of a mountain range. At 2021, the glider momentarily reached an altitude of about 14,000 ft mean sea level (msl). The glider then descended to about 10,200 ft msl. At 2036, it climbed up to about 15,000 ft msl, having reached that altitude at 2059. At 2101, the flight track reversed course to the north back toward the dest
Probable cause
An in-flight cardiac event which necessitated an emergency landing, and which the pilot succumbed to.
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
Source: NTSB aviation accident database (US government, public domain). Findings may be preliminary or later revised by the NTSB. Not a complete global record.
