Schweizer SGS 135 N17976

Summary

On 8 June 1997 at about 20:05 local time, a Schweizer SGS 135 registered N17976 was involved in an accident near Pepperell, Massachusetts, United States. One person was on board and one was seriously injured. The aircraft was substantially damaged. The NTSB has published a probable cause for this accident; it is quoted in full below.

Date

8 June 1997 at 20:05

Classification

Accident

Location

Pepperell, Massachusetts, United States

Nearest airport

Pepperell (MA09)

Coordinates

Not recorded

Aircraft

Schweizer SGS 135

Registration

N17976

Category

Glider

Operator

Not recorded

Operating rule

Part 91: General Aviation

Purpose of flight

Personal

Phase of flight

Not recorded

Aircraft damage

Substantial

Weather

VMC

Light

Day

NTSB number

NYC97LA108

1 person was seriously injured.

The pilot's failure to maintain airspeed during a turn, which resulted in an inadvertent stall and subsequent uncontrolled descent into water.

Quoted verbatim from the NTSB record. This site does not paraphrase or interpret it.

Read the full NTSB narrative

After 30 minutes of flying on a local flight, the pilot/owner of the glider entered a left traffic pattern for landing on runway 24 at the departure airport. The pilot determined that she was too high on final approach, and initiated a 360-degree turn to lose altitude. The pilot stated that during the turn to final, the left wing of the glider stalled. This induced a spin to the left at 300 feet, and the glider descended into a river. Winds at an airport 6 miles northeast were reported from 150 degrees at 10 knots.

Quoted verbatim from the NTSB record.