Schleicher ASW 28 18E N63KR

Summary

On 26 May 2017 at about 22:23 local time, a Schleicher ASW 28 18E registered N63KR was involved in an accident near Ephrata, Washington, United States. One person was on board and one died. The aircraft was substantially damaged. The NTSB has published a probable cause for this accident; it is quoted in full below.

Date

26 May 2017 at 22:23

Classification

Accident

Location

Ephrata, Washington, United States

Nearest airport

Ephrata Municipal Airport (EPH)

Coordinates

47.3292, -119.7097

Aircraft

Schleicher ASW 28 18E

Registration

N63KR

Category

Glider

Year built

2004

Engines

1

Operator

Not recorded

Operating rule

Part 91: General Aviation

Purpose of flight

Personal

Phase of flight

Not recorded

Route

Ephrata → Ephrata

Aircraft damage

Substantial

Weather

VMC

Light

Day

NTSB number

WPR17FA107

1 person died.

The pilot's failure to maintain glider control while attempting to conduct an off-airport landing, which resulted in an aerodynamic stall and impact with terrain.

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

Read the full NTSB narrative

The private pilot of the glider received a tow to 3,000 ft above ground level. Recorded data from an onboard GPS device showed that the glider proceeded in a general westerly direction until it was about 15 nautical miles from the departure airport. It then turned and tracked eastward for the remainder of the flight. The data ended about 9 miles west-northwest of the departure airport. During the 43 minutes of recorded data, the glider reached a peak altitude of about 8,500 ft, slowly descended to about 3,900 ft, then entered another gradual descent that continued until ground contact. During the last 8 minutes of recorded data, the glider's speed was recorded slowly decreasing from about 76 to 40 knots. The glider came to rest in a dry, plowed field slightly northwest of the last GPS target. The engine was stowed and secure, and examination revealed no mechanical malfunctions or anomalies of the glider that would have precluded normal operation.  The pilot received his private pilot certificate about one year before the accident and purchased the accident glider a few days later. The pilot's first flight in the glider occurred about 3 weeks before the accident from the accident airport. The accident flight was the pilot's second flight in the accident glider. It could not be determined whether the pilot obtained training specific to the accident glider or in motorglider operations. The flight track data was consistent with normal glider operations and a slow descent to land. However, the on scene impact marks, the contained debris field, and the damage to the wreckage were all consistent with a stall. Therefore, it appeared that the pilot was attempting to make an off-field landing when the glider stalled and impacted the ground. It is unknown why the pilot did not use the airplane's engine; however, it was noted that very little fuel was removed from the glider at the accident site.

Quoted verbatim from the NTSB record.