ASN Wikibase Occurrence # 21841
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| Date: | Wednesday 23 July 2008 |
| Time: | 12:25 |
| Type: |  Schempp-Hirth Ventus a |
| Owner/operator: | Richard Johnson |
| Registration: | N47JD |
| MSN: | 29 |
| Total airframe hrs: | 5009 hours |
| Fatalities: | Fatalities: 1 / Occupants: 1 |
| Aircraft damage: | Destroyed |
| Category: | Accident |
| Location: | 10 miles from Midlothian, Ellis County, TX -
 United States of America
|
| Phase: | Landing |
| Nature: | Private |
| Departure airport: | Tsa Gliderport, TX (TA11) |
| Investigating agency: | NTSB |
| Confidence Rating: |  Accident investigation report completed and information captured |
Witnesses to the accident said the glider appeared to be flying normally when it suddenly pitched up and down, then flew into the ground. This was substantiated by flight data from an onboard recorder. The pilot was fatally injured and portions of the glider's wings and empennage were seperated from the fuselage. The pilot was an 11 time national soaring champion with approximately 50 years experience flying gliders and airplanes. The pilot had very recent symptoms, recent test results, and autopsy findings consistent with serious coronary artery disease. He also had abnormal rhythms on ECG monitoring that would have likely increased his risk of sudden death. The pilot was in the process of scheduling a cardiac catheterization and possible angioplasty. He may have been impaired or incapacitated by pain, an abnormal heart rhythm, or sudden cardiac death. The circumstances of the accident are consistent with an abrupt physical inability to continue controlling the aircraft.
Probable Cause: The pilot's inability to maintain aircraft control due to an incapacitating cardiac event. Contributing to the accident was the pilot's poor decision to fly with known serious medical issues.
Accident investigation:
 |
|
Sources:
NTSB
History of this aircraft
Other occurrences involving this aircraft
| 4 June 1998 | F-CGLV | 1 | Crête de Géruen |  |
w/o | |
| Mid-air collision | ||||||
Location
Revision history:
| Date/time | Contributor | Updates |
|---|---|---|
| 26-Jul-2008 12:15 | jorgetadeu7 | Added |
| 04-Jul-2009 10:58 | DColclasure | Updated |
| 18-Jan-2012 09:34 | Alpine Flight | Updated [Time, Aircraft type, Cn, Source, Narrative] |
| 21-Dec-2016 19:14 | ASN Update Bot | Updated [Time, Damage, Category, Investigating agency] |
| 21-Dec-2016 19:16 | ASN Update Bot | Updated [Time, Damage, Category, Investigating agency] |
| 21-Dec-2016 19:20 | ASN Update Bot | Updated [Time, Damage, Category, Investigating agency] |
| 03-Dec-2017 11:26 | ASN Update Bot | Updated [Operator, Other fatalities, Departure airport, Destination airport, Source, Narrative] |
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