ASN Wikibase Occurrence # 227337
This information is added by users of ASN. Neither ASN nor the Flight Safety Foundation are responsible for the completeness or correctness of this information.
If you feel this information is incomplete or incorrect, you can submit corrected information.
| Date: | Wednesday 17 July 2019 |
| Time: | 11:25 LT |
| Type: | Bölkow Phoebus B-1 |
| Owner/operator: | Private |
| Registration: | N112AJ |
| MSN: | 747 |
| Year of manufacture: | 1967 |
| Fatalities: | Fatalities: 1 / Occupants: 1 |
| Aircraft damage: | Destroyed |
| Category: | Accident |
| Location: | Alvord Desert, OR -
 United States of America
|
| Phase: | Take off |
| Nature: | Unknown |
| Departure airport: | Alvord Desert, OR |
| Alvord Desert, OR | |
| Investigating agency: | NTSB |
| Confidence Rating: |  Accident investigation report completed and information captured |
The glider pilot took off utilizing the auto launch (vehicle-tow) method. Photos taken by a witness revealed that the glider overran the towline, which resulted in a slack towline. The glider then pitched up and, after reaching about 100-150 ft above ground level, rolled to the left and impacted terrain in a near vertical attitude. The tow vehicle driver stated that the truck had not yet accelerated to 60-65 mph needed for the release of the tow cable from inside the cockpit; instead, the truck had only accelerated to 55 mph before the spotter told the driver to stop as the glider impacted the terrain.
A slack towline can be caused by a change in speed of either the glider or tow vehicle. If not corrected, a slack towline can result in the loss of control in flight. Also, a change in wind gradient can have a noticeable effect on a glider's speed during ground launches. When a slack towline is encountered, a pilot should communicate with the tow vehicle to change speed, adjust pitch to control airspeed, or release the tow rope and land straight ahead.
The investigation could not determine why the slack towline occurred. Nevertheless, the pilot did not follow recommended procedures for responding to a slack towline and subsequently lost control of the glider.
Probable Cause: Pilot's failure to properly respond to a slack towline during takeoff, which resulted in a loss of control of the glider.
Accident investigation:
 |
|
Sources:
NTSB WPR19LA191
Location
Revision history:
| Date/time | Contributor | Updates |
|---|---|---|
| 18-Jul-2019 23:34 | Captain Adam | Added |
| 18-Jul-2019 23:59 | RobertMB | Updated [Time, Aircraft type, Cn] |
| 02-Jul-2022 07:21 | ASN Update Bot | Updated [Time, Other fatalities, Nature, Departure airport, Destination airport, Source, Damage, Narrative, Category, Accident report] |
Corrections or additions? ... Edit this accident description
The Aviation Safety Network is an exclusive service provided by:
Quick Links:
| ASN Home | Send Correction / Feedback |
| FSF Home | Disclaimer | Copyright |
| Contact Us | Privacy Policy |
| Press / Media |
CONNECT WITH US:
©2024 Flight Safety Foundation