NTSB Identification: WPR12CA304
14 CFR Part 91: General Aviation
Accident occurred Friday, July 13, 2012 in Redmond, OR
Probable Cause Approval Date: 10/04/2012
Aircraft: SCHEMPP HIRTH NIMBUS II, registration: N96132
Injuries: 1 Uninjured.
NTSB investigators used data provided by various entities, including, but not limited to, the Federal Aviation Administration and/or the operator and did not travel in support of this investigation to prepare this aircraft accident report.
According to the pilot, his glider was towed to an altitude of 6,000 feet above mean sea level (msl), which was about 2,600 feet above ground level, and released. The glider achieved an altitude of 7,500 feet msl, and the pilot continued to an area that he normally used for soaring. Once he reached the location, he realized the glider was too low to glide back to the airport and that in order to get to the next available safe field for landing the glider would have to cross a tree line. Upon approach to the trees, the pilot did not think the glider would be able to clear them, so he set up his approach for landing onto a road adjacent to the tree line. On the landing roll the glider’s right wing struck a tree. The pilot reported that the right wing was damaged and that the tail boom had separated. He also stated that there were no mechanical problems with the glider prior to the accident.
The National Transportation Safety Board determines the probable cause(s) of this accident to be:
A loss of aerodynamic lift that resulted in a forced landing on unsuitable terrain.
According to the pilot, his glider was towed to an altitude of 6,500 feet above mean sea level (msl), which was about 2,600 feet above ground level (agl), and released. The glider achieved an altitude of 7,500 feet, and the pilot continued on to an area that he normally used for soaring. Once he reached the location, he realized the glider was too low to glide back to the airport, or to a known suitable field for an off-airport landing. The pilot stated that his option was to soar to the next available safe field for landing. However, in order to get to the field, the glider would have to cross over a tree line. Upon approach to the trees, the pilot did not think the glider would be able to make it over them, so he set up his approach for landing onto a road adjacent to the tree line. On the landing roll out the right wing struck a tree. The pilot reported that the right wing was damaged, and the tail boom had separated. He also stated that there were no mechanical problems with the glider.
IDENTIFICATION
Regis#: 96132 Make/Model: GLID Description: SCHEMPP NIMBUS II GLIDER
Date: 07/13/2012 Time: 2130
Event Type: Accident Highest Injury: None Mid Air: N Missing: N
Damage: Substantial
LOCATION
City: BEND State: OR Country: US
DESCRIPTION
AIRCRAFT ON LANDING, TAIL SEPARATED, BEND OR
INJURY DATA Total Fatal: 0
# Crew: 1 Fat: 0 Ser: 0 Min: 0 Unk:
# Pass: 0 Fat: 0 Ser: 0 Min: 0 Unk:
# Grnd: Fat: 0 Ser: 0 Min: 0 Unk:
OTHER DATA
Activity: Unknown Phase: Landing Operation: OTHER
FAA FSDO: PORTLAND, OR (NM09) Entry date: 07/16/2012
BEND, Ore. - A Bend man escaped serious injury Friday afternoon when he tried to land his glider plane on a forest road near Tumalo Falls and its wings clipped a small tree, causing it to crash, Deschutes County sheriff’s deputies said.
Deputies were dispatched around 2:20 p.m. to a report of a plane crash near the falls, west of Bend, said special services Deputy Liam Klatt.
Responding deputies found the glider and its pilot, John Bentley, 52, on Forest Service Road 4603, which runs from Skyliners Road to Tumalo Falls, Klatt said.
Bentley told deputies he’d started his flight from the Bend Airport and was in the air for almost an hour when the glider experienced what he described as an irrevocable loss of lift west of Bend.
Klatt said the Schempp-Hirth Nimbus-2, an open-class glider, has a wingspan of more than 66 feet, and it clipped a small tree as it neared the ground, causing it to crash onto the forest road.
Bentley suffered only minor injuries, Klatt said, and declined any medical attention.
The Federal Aviation Administration and National Transportation Safety Board were notified of the crash, and officials with both agencies spoke with the pilot before allowing him to remove the plane from the crash scene.
Klatt said Bentley is an experienced pilot, with about 30 years of experience in both gliders and powered aircraft. He also said alcohol is not believed to have been a contributing factor in the crash.
Responding deputies found the glider and its pilot, John Bentley, 52, on Forest Service Road 4603, which runs from Skyliners Road to Tumalo Falls, Klatt said.
Bentley told deputies he’d started his flight from the Bend Airport and was in the air for almost an hour when the glider experienced what he described as an irrevocable loss of lift west of Bend.
Klatt said the Schempp-Hirth Nimbus-2, an open-class glider, has a wingspan of more than 66 feet, and it clipped a small tree as it neared the ground, causing it to crash onto the forest road.
Bentley suffered only minor injuries, Klatt said, and declined any medical attention.
The Federal Aviation Administration and National Transportation Safety Board were notified of the crash, and officials with both agencies spoke with the pilot before allowing him to remove the plane from the crash scene.
Klatt said Bentley is an experienced pilot, with about 30 years of experience in both gliders and powered aircraft. He also said alcohol is not believed to have been a contributing factor in the crash.
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