Burkhart Grob G103C TWIN III ACRO N103MS

Summary

On 14 June 2009 at about 15:20 local time, a Burkhart Grob G103C TWIN III ACRO registered N103MS, operated by Sandhill Soaring Club, was involved in an accident near Gregory, Michigan, United States. 2 people were on board and one died, 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

14 June 2009 at 15:20

Classification

Accident

Location

Gregory, Michigan, United States

Nearest airport

Richmond Field (69G)

Coordinates

42.4417, -84.0667

Aircraft

Burkhart Grob G103C TWIN III ACRO

Registration

N103MS

Category

Glider

Operator

Sandhill Soaring Club

Operating rule

Part 91: General Aviation

Purpose of flight

Glider Tow

Phase of flight

Not recorded

Route

Gregory → Gregory

Aircraft damage

Substantial

Weather

VMC

Light

Day

NTSB number

CEN09LA353

1 person died.

The pilot's failure to maintain sufficient airspeed during the turn to return for landing, which resulted an inadvertent stall/spin. Contributing to the accident was the failure of the ground winch tow cable shortly after takeoff.

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

Read the full NTSB narrative

The pilot reported that the takeoff and climb were normal during the ground launch of the glider until about 400 feet above ground level when the winch cable broke. The pilot stated that he lowered the nose and established a speed of at least 60 knots. He continued the upwind pattern until the glider was in a position to begin a right 180-degree turn in order to line up with the landing area. He stated: “I could feel in the controls that something was not right and the glider was not responding in the manner that I am accustomed. There were none of the signs of a stall and the glider did not behave like it has any time that I have practiced stalls. Before I could determine the cause or take any action, the nose abruptly dropped and we dove toward the intended runway.” The glider impacted the ground nose down and in a right bank. A postaccident inspection confirmed flight control continuity from each control surface to the aft cockpit control stick with two exceptions. The inspection noted two separation points in the flight control push-pull tubes at the aft fuselage and empennage. Both were consistent in location and appearance with overload failures due to impact forces. No anomalies consistent with a pre-impact failure or malfunction were observed. Metallurgical examination of the winch cable revealed features consistent with overstress fracture.

Quoted verbatim from the NTSB record.