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May 13, 2007 · Burkhart Grob Flugzeugbau G103 · N39783

Franconia, NH

Overview

Report Status
Final with probable cause
Event Type
Accident
Date
May 13, 2007
Injury Outcomes
2 injuries (2 minor injuries)
Location
Franconia, NH
Aircraft
Burkhart Grob Flugzeugbau G103
Tail Number
N39783
Injuries
Minor
Aircraft Damage
Substantial
NTSB Number
NYC07CA118

After about 2.5 hours of soaring in the Burkhart Grob Flugzeugbau G-103 glider, the pilot returned to the airport and entered the traffic pattern at 1,200 feet with a "small amount" of spoilers deployed. He turned onto the downwind leg at 800 feet, and used "more spoilers" to descend to 500 feet. He then turned onto the base leg, and at 300 feet and 60 knots airspeed, he turned onto the final leg of the approach and aligned the glider with the runway. He immediately felt the glider had entered rising air, so he performed a full slip with the spoilers deployed; however, the glider did not descend significantly. The pilot waited for the glider to exit the rising air mass, and it continued to descend moderately until about mid-field, when it descended rapidly. The glider touched down about 3/4 down the runway and bounced back into the air. Due to a pile of debris at the end of the runway, the pilot elected to close the spoilers, overfly the debris, and land the glider in the treetops ahead at a slow speed. Before he could accomplish his plan, a crosswind blew the glider towards a tree. The left wing contacted the tree, and the glider subsequently impacted the ground.

NTSB Probable Cause

The pilot's failure to obtain the proper touchdown point. A factor in the accident was an encounter with an updraft while on approach.

Full Narrative

According to the pilot, after about 2.5 hours of soaring in the Burkhart Grob Flugzeugbau G-103 glider, he returned to the airport and entered the traffic pattern at 1,200 feet with a "small amount" of spoilers deployed. He turned onto the downwind leg at 800 feet, and used "more spoilers" to descend to 500 feet. He then turned onto the base leg, and at 300 feet and 60 knots airspeed, he turned onto the final leg of the approach and aligned the glider with the runway. He immediately felt the glider had entered rising air, so he performed a full slip with the spoilers deployed; however, the glider did not descend significantly. Due to the proximity of the surrounding trees to the glider, the pilot felt that he could not successfully perform an s-turn or a 360-degree turn to lose energy, and instead felt that he should wait for the glider to exit the rising air mass. The glider continued to descend moderately until about mid-field, when it descended rapidly. The glider touched down about 3/4 down the runway and bounced back into the air. Due to a pile of debris at the end of the runway, the pilot elected to close the spoilers, overfly the debris, and land the glider in the treetops ahead at a slow speed. Before he could accomplish his plan, a crosswind blew the glider towards a tree. The left wing contacted the tree, and the glider subsequently impacted the ground.

Flight

Event TypeAccident
Event Time15:30 EDT
Nearest AirportFranconia Airport (0nm)
Runway36
Runway Length2305 ft
Runway Width150 ft
Flight Plan FiledNone
Aircraft FireNo
Aircraft ExplosionNo

Aircraft

AircraftBurkhart Grob Flugzeugbau G103
Tail NumberN39783
Aircraft CategoryGli
DamageSubstantial
Operating RulePart 91
Engines0

People & Injuries

Injury Summary2 injuries (2 minor injuries)
Fatal0
Serious0
Minor2
Uninjured0
Total2
Crew 1Age 44 · None · Minor

Conditions

ConditionsVMC
LightDaylight
Wind340° @ 10 kt, gusting 16 kt
CeilingNone
Temperature / Dew Point55 / 21 C
Altimeter0
Observation Time18:52
Weather SourceWFAC

Appendix: Source Data