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| Date: | Thursday 11 April 2002 |
| Time: | 16:00 |
| Type: |  Politechnika Warszawska PW-5 Smyk |
| Owner/operator: | Private |
| Registration: | N908BT |
| MSN: | 1707003 |
| Fatalities: | Fatalities: 0 / Occupants: 1 |
| Other fatalities: | 0 |
| Aircraft damage: | Substantial |
| Category: | Accident |
| Location: | New Smithville, PA -
 United States of America
|
| Phase: | Landing |
| Nature: | Private |
| Departure airport: | Blairstown, NJ (1N7) |
| Blairstown, NJ (1N7) | |
| Investigating agency: | NTSB |
| Confidence Rating: |  Accident investigation report completed and information captured |
During an "out-and-back" cross-country flight in a glider, the pilot noticed that the thermal lift began to dissipate, and he decided to "land out" in a field 1,500 feet below. He made a traffic pattern entry, and performed a forced landing. While on the base leg, the glider struck the top of a row of 20-foot-tall "hedge trees" at the edge of the field, and came to rest suspended in one of the trees. Examination of the glider revealed no mechanical anomalies.
Probable Cause: The pilot's inadequate evaluation of the weather which resulted in the loss of thermal lift and collision with trees.
Accident investigation:
 |
|
Sources:
NTSB: https://www.ntsb.gov/_layouts/ntsb.aviation/brief.aspx?ev_id=20020419X00541&key=1
Location
Revision history:
| Date/time | Contributor | Updates |
|---|---|---|
| 04-Jul-2009 10:57 | DColclasure | Added |
| 26-Nov-2011 13:01 | Alpine Flight | Updated [Time, Aircraft type, Cn, Nature, Departure airport, Destination airport, Narrative, ] |
| 21-Dec-2016 19:25 | ASN Update Bot | Updated [Time, Damage, Category, Investigating agency, ] |
| 09-Dec-2017 16:06 | ASN Update Bot | Updated [Cn, Departure airport, Destination airport, Source, Narrative, ] |
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