Schweizer SGS 1-26E N33907
12 May 2001 · New Milford, Connecticut, United States · Minor injuries
Summary
On 12 May 2001 at about 19:15 local time, a Schweizer SGS 1-26E registered N33907 was involved in an accident near New Milford, Connecticut, United States. One person was on board and one had minor injuries. The aircraft was substantially damaged. The NTSB has published a probable cause for this accident; it is quoted in full below.
The record
- Date
- at 19:15
- Classification
- Accident
- Location
- New Milford, Connecticut, United States
- Nearest airport
- Candlelight Farms (11N)
- Coordinates
- 41.5750, -73.4600
- Aircraft
- Schweizer SGS 1-26E
- Registration
- N33907
- Category
- Glider
- Operator
- Not recorded
- Operating rule
- Part 91: General Aviation
- Purpose of flight
- Instructional
- Phase of flight
- Not recorded
- Route
- New Milford → New Milford
- Aircraft damage
- Substantial
- Weather
- VMC
- Light
- Day
- NTSB number
- NYC01LA121
People
1 person had minor injuries.
| On board | Died | Serious | Minor | Uninjured |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 |
Probable cause
the student pilot's improper decision to fly northeast of the airport with winds from the southwest, and his subsequent diverted attention to the glider's proximity to the airport while he searched for thermals, which resulted in an off airport landing.
Quoted verbatim from the NTSB record. This site does not paraphrase or interpret it.
Read the full NTSB narrative
The student pilot departed in a glider from an airport with an elevation of 675 feet, and was aero-towed to 3,000 feet msl, over the airport, where he released. Initially he stayed north of the airport and climbed to 4,000 feet. He then headed to the northeast, while the winds were from the southwest. Over a period of several minutes the glider lost 1,900 feet while the pilot was searching for thermals. The pilot then elected to return to his departure airport. En route to the airport, he encountered a rain shower, and was sinking 500 to 600 fpm. He had insufficient altitude to reach the airport with the existing headwinds of 5 to 10 knots, and settled into trees about 1/4 of a miles from the approach end of the runway. The glider club field safety manager reported that he had cautioned the pilot to remain upwind of the airport prior to his departure. The pilot reported that he had focused his attention to finding lift and did not maintain his awareness of his proximity to the airport.
Quoted verbatim from the NTSB record.
Other Schweizer SGS-1 accidents
| Date | Aircraft | Location | Operator | Outcome | Died |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 8 Sep 2001 | Schweizer SGS 1-35 | Cumberland, Maryland, United States | - | No injuries | - |
| 5 May 2001 | Schweizer SGS 1-34 | Adelanto, California, United States | - | Serious injuries | - |
| 3 Feb 2001 | Schweizer SGS 1-26E | Lake Elsinore, California, United States | - | No injuries | - |
| 7 Aug 2001 | Schweizer SGS 1-26B | Rock Island, Washington, United States | - | No injuries | - |
| 15 Aug 2002 | Schweizer SGS 1-26B | Hobbs, New Mexico, United States | - | Serious injuries | - |
| 11 Nov 2000 | Schweizer SGS 1-36 | Lake Elsinore, California, United States | - | Serious injuries | - |
Other accidents in this area
| Date | Aircraft | Location | Operator | Outcome | Died |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 11 Sep 2001 | Yakovlev YAK-52 | Washington, Connecticut, United States | - | Fatal | 1 |
| 9 Mar 2001 | Hawker Siddeley HS-125-3A | Bridgeport, Connecticut, United States | - | No injuries | - |
| 26 Aug 2001 | Cessna 172M | Danbury, Connecticut, United States | North American Aviation Inc. | No injuries | - |
| 14 Nov 2001 | Kaman K-1200 | Bloomfield, Connecticut, United States | - | Minor injuries | - |
| 23 Sep 2001 | Digimas STARDUSTER TOO | Watertown, Connecticut, United States | - | Serious injuries | - |
| 22 Jun 2001 | Piper PA-32R-301 | Greenwich, Connecticut, United States | - | Fatal | 1 |