LOUISBURG, NC, USA
N7592
SCHWEIZER 233A
THE GLIDER INSTRUCTOR STATED THAT, DURING THE TURN FROM BASE TO FINAL APPROACH, HE ENCOUNTERED A DOWN DRAFT. HE STATED THAT HE COULD NOT ARREST THE AIRCRAFT DESCENT PRIOR TO IMPACTING THE TREES ADJACENT TO THE RUNWAY. THE TEMPERATURE WAS 33 DEGREES CELSIUS, AND THE DENSITY ALTITUDE OF THE AIRPORT AT THE TIME OF THE ACCIDENT WAS 2,762 FEET.
On August 12, 1995, at 1430 eastern daylight time, a Schweizer 233A glider, N7592, was substantially damaged following a collision with trees while turning base for a full stop landing at North Raleigh Airport in Louisburg, North Carolina. The instructional flight was being operated under the provisions of 14 CFR Part 91 with no flight plan filed. Visual meteorological conditions prevailed at the time of the accident. Neither the flight instructor nor the pre-solo student pilot were injured in the accident. The flight departed Louisburg, North Carolina, at 1400 hours. According to the flight instructor, as they turned from the downwind leg to base during landing, they experienced a down draft. The flight instructor stated that the sink rate increased at such a rate that he could not arrest the sink rate before the glider collided with the trees. No mechanical problems were reported with the glider. The temperature was 33 degrees celsius, and the density altitude of the airport at the time of the accident was 2,762 feet.
The flight instructor's improper in-flight planning and decision, in that he failed to maintain sufficient altitude to clear the trees surrounding the airport, and failed to take into consideration the high density altitude at the time of the accident.
Source: NTSB Aviation Accident Database
Aviation Accidents App
In-Depth Access to Aviation Accident Reports
