Schweizer SGS 2-33A N17879

Summary

On 15 May 2022 at about 18:58 local time, a Schweizer SGS 2-33A registered N17879, operated by Jersey Ridge Soaring LLC, was involved in an accident near Blairstown, New Jersey, 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

15 May 2022 at 18:58

Classification

Accident

Location

Blairstown, New Jersey, United States

Nearest airport

Blairstown Airport (1N7)

Coordinates

40.9727, -74.9920

Aircraft

Schweizer SGS 2-33A

Registration

N17879

Category

Glider

Year built

1972

Operator

Jersey Ridge Soaring LLC

Operating rule

Part 91: General Aviation

Purpose of flight

Instructional

Phase of flight

Not recorded

Aircraft damage

Substantial

Weather

VMC

Light

Day

NTSB number

ERA22FA227

1 person died.

The student pilot’s failure to maintain proper alignment with the landing area during the approach, which resulted in the left wing impacting a tree.

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

Read the full NTSB narrative

The student pilot was maneuvering the glider for landing in the grass area left of and parallel to the runway after a solo traffic pattern flight. Witnesses reported that, as the pilot turned the glider left from the base leg to final, the turn was “early,” resulting in the glider being left of the approach path, and “slightly higher than normal.” The pilot performed a forward slip and recovered, which appeared to put the glider closer to a normal glidepath; however, it was “somewhat close” to tall trees located to the left of the approach path. The pilot then entered another forward slip, and the glider maintained a slight left bank during the recovery, which placed it closer to the trees. The left wing subsequently impacted a tree and the glider rotated to the left, pitched downward, and descended into a grass field adjacent to the tree line. Examination of the glider revealed no anomalies that would have precluded normal operation. Although a bird remnant was found in the debris path, no remnants were found on the glider or any of its components, and it is likely that the remnant was present before the accident. It is likely that the pilot became fixated on attaining the proper glide path during the landing approach and failed to correct the glider’s lateral misalignment with the intended landing area, which resulted in impact with the tree.

Quoted verbatim from the NTSB record.