Burkhart Grob 103 N427BG
23 May 1998 · Briggs, Texas, United States · No injuries
Summary
On 23 May 1998 at about 20:18 local time, a Burkhart Grob 103 registered N427BG was involved in an accident near Briggs, Texas, United States. 2 people were 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.
The record
- Date
- at 20:18
- Classification
- Accident
- Location
- Briggs, Texas, United States
- Nearest airport
- Fault Line Flyers (TX23)
- Coordinates
- Not recorded
- Aircraft
- Burkhart Grob 103
- Registration
- N427BG
- Category
- Glider
- Operator
- Not recorded
- Operating rule
- Part 91: General Aviation
- Purpose of flight
- Personal
- Phase of flight
- Not recorded
- Aircraft damage
- Substantial
- Weather
- VMC
- Light
- Day
- NTSB number
- FTW98LA244
People
Nobody was injured.
| On board | Died | Serious | Minor | Uninjured |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 |
Probable cause
The pilot's misjudgment of the distance and altitude. Factors were the lack of thermal lift and his diverted attention while on downwind.
Quoted verbatim from the NTSB record. This site does not paraphrase or interpret it.
Read the full NTSB narrative
The glider pilot had released the glider from the tow plane prematurely at 1,500 feet MSL due to conflicting traffic. After 'thermalling with another glider for a while, he could not find much lift,' so he headed back to the airport to land. The pilot added that he was too low when he entered the downwind leg for runway 16; however, he estimated that he would be able to reach the approach end of the runway. In a written statement, he stated that he became distracted by a yellow glider that he thought was blocking the landing runway. The pilot reported that while maneuvering to land at the threshold for the 4,500-foot turf runway, he turned the aircraft onto the base leg prematurely; consequently the left wing impacted the ground nearly perpendicular to the runway near the threshold. Subsequently, the glider impacted the ground in a nose low attitude, bounced back in the air and impacted the ground in a tail low attitude, separating the tail section.
Quoted verbatim from the NTSB record.
Other Burkhart Grob 103 accidents
| Date | Aircraft | Location | Operator | Outcome | Died |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 28 Aug 1999 | Burkhart Grob 103C | San Antonio, Texas, United States | - | Serious injuries | - |
| 2 May 1997 | Burkhart Grob 103A | Peoria, Arizona, United States | - | No injuries | - |
| 3 Oct 1997 | Burkhart Grob 103 | Caddo Mills, Texas, United States | Carol Walker | No injuries | - |
| 4 Dec 1994 | Burkhart Grob 103A | Blairstown, New Jersey, United States | Eastern Mountain Soaring | No injuries | - |
| 10 Aug 1992 | Burkhart Grob 103 | Truckee, California, United States | Soar Truckee, Inc. | Serious injuries | - |
| 31 Mar 1990 | Burkhart Grob 103 | Byron, California, United States | Ames Soaring Club, Inc | No injuries | - |
Other accidents in this area
| Date | Aircraft | Location | Operator | Outcome | Died |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 9 Jan 1998 | Beechcraft V35 | Seguin, Texas, United States | - | Minor injuries | - |
| 14 Jan 1998 | Poling KELEHER LARK KR1B | Georgetown, Texas, United States | - | Fatal | 1 |
| 24 Jan 1998 | Cessna 140A | Justin, Texas, United States | - | No injuries | - |
| 24 Jul 1998 | Bell 206L-3 | Reklaw, Texas, United States | U.s. Forest Service | Minor injuries | - |
| 29 Aug 1998 | Jodel F11-3 | Beeville, Texas, United States | - | Fatal | 2 |
| 29 Aug 1998 | Piper PA-28-235 | Mineola, Texas, United States | - | No injuries | - |