Doktor Fiberglas H101 SALTO N110AZ

Summary

On 24 April 2011 at about 22:24 local time, a Doktor Fiberglas H101 SALTO registered N110AZ was involved in an accident near Peoria, Arizona, United States. One person was on board and nobody was injured. The aircraft was substantially damaged. The NTSB has published a probable cause for this accident; it is quoted in full below.

Date

24 April 2011 at 22:24

Classification

Accident

Location

Peoria, Arizona, United States

Nearest airport

Pleasant Valley Airport (P48)

Coordinates

33.8006, -112.2506

Aircraft

Doktor Fiberglas H101 SALTO

Registration

N110AZ

Category

Glider

Operator

Not recorded

Operating rule

Part 91: General Aviation

Purpose of flight

Personal

Phase of flight

Not recorded

Route

Peoria → Peoria

Aircraft damage

Substantial

Weather

VMC

Light

Day

NTSB number

WPR11CA208

Nobody was injured.

The glider's encounter with turbulence and loss of lift, which resulted in a ditching in a lake.

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

Read the full NTSB narrative

The local soaring flight departed via air-tow. Upon entering two back-to-back thermals, the glider climbed to an altitude of 9,000 feet mean sea level. The pilot maneuvered the glider toward marker clouds for additional thermaling; however, he encountered what he described as severe turbulence and decided to head back to the airport. Just abeam the northwest end of a lake near the airport, the glider encountered turbulence along with a high sink rate. The pilot reported the sink rate to be from 500 to 800 feet per minute (fpm), with extremes up to 1,200 fpm to 1,500 fpm. The pilot attempted to maneuver the glider to minimize its time in the sink condition. He realized that he was not going to make it back to the airport and started to look for a place to land. Due to busy roads and full parking lots, he chose to land along the shoreline of the lake. The glider touched down about 30 yards from the shore. The pilot stated that, in retrospect, he believes that the glider was caught on the leeward side of a ridge or the downdraft of a wave. He reported no mechanical anomalies with the glider prior to the accident. The right side of the tail separated from the glider during the ditching and damage occurred to the spoilers and ailerons.

Quoted verbatim from the NTSB record.