Allstar Pzl SZD 51-1 JUNIOR N751MS

Summary

On 24 May 2006 at about 17:40 local time, a Allstar Pzl SZD 51-1 JUNIOR registered N751MS, operated by Memphis Soaring Society, was involved in an accident near Cherry Valley, Arkansas, United States. One person was on board and one had minor injuries. The aircraft was substantially damaged. The NTSB has published a probable cause for this accident; it is quoted in full below.

Date

24 May 2006 at 17:40

Classification

Accident

Location

Cherry Valley, Arkansas, United States

Nearest airport

Lawrence Field Gliderport (4AR5)

Coordinates

35.3692, -90.7503

Aircraft

Allstar Pzl SZD 51-1 JUNIOR

Registration

N751MS

Category

Glider

Operator

Memphis Soaring Society

Operating rule

Part 91: General Aviation

Purpose of flight

Personal

Phase of flight

Not recorded

Route

Cherry Valley → Unknown

Aircraft damage

Substantial

Weather

VMC

Light

Day

NTSB number

DFW06CA139

1 person had minor injuries.

The pilot's failure to maintain clearance from a tree while on final to approach to landing. A contributing factor was the loss of thermal lift on final approach.

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

Read the full NTSB narrative

After a glider flight of approximately one hour, the 4,674-hour commercial pilot was on final approach to land to the 3,638-foot long by 300-foot wide grass/turf runway. While on short final, the single-seat composite glider encountered "severe sink" and the left wingtip impacted a tree. The glider "cartwheeled" and came to rest in the upright position on the approach end of the runway 25. The pilot was extricated by rescue personal, who later reported his injuries as minor. No mechanical anomalies were reported with the airplane's flight controls. The pilot reported having accumulated 10 hours in the same make and model, with a total of 31.6 hours in gliders. The reported wind at the nearest airport with a weather reporting station, located about 35 nautical miles north of the accident site, were reported from 220 degrees at 5 knots, gusting to 12 knots. The pilot recommended that glider pilots use an "aim point" at least 800 feet further down the runway when landing in the future.

Quoted verbatim from the NTSB record.