NTSB CAROL · Event
Event CHI88DEC07
Aircraft involved
Probable cause & findings
FAILURE (AT FIRST PARTIAL, THEN TOTAL) OF THE AIRCRAFT'S POWERPLANT AT AN ALTITUDE OF ABOUT 100 FEET ABOVE THE GROUND DURING THE INITIAL CLIMBOUT WITH A GLIDER IN TOW; A FORCED LANDING ENSUED, DURING WHICH THE AIRCRAFT STRUCK A FENCE, A SMALL TREE, AND IMPACTED THE GROUND. THE GLIDER RELEASED AND LANDED WITHOUT INCIDENT.
Factual narrative
AS THE AIRCRAFT CLIMBED THROUGH AN ALTITUDE OF ABOUT 100 FEET ABOVE THE GROUND WITH A GLIDER IN TOW, THE ENGINE BEGAN TO RUN ROUGH, AND THEN FAILED COMPLETELY. THE PILOT EXECUTED A FORCED LANDING IN A GRASSY, ROLLING FIELD, STRIKING A FENCE AND SMALL TREE BEFORE IMPACTING THE GROUND.THE GLIDER RELEASED AND LANDED WITHOUT INCIDENT. POST-ACCIDENT EXAMINATION OF THE POWERPLANT, IT'S SYSTEMS AND ACCESSORIES REVEALED NO EVIDENCE OF PRE-IMPACT MECHANICAL MALFUNCTION/DIFFICULTY. THE ENGINE PERFORMED SATISFACTORILY DURING A SUBSEQUENT RUN-UP. INVESTIGATORS DRAINED 7.5 GALLONS OF 80/87 OCTANE AVIATION FUEL FROM EACH OF TWO FUEL TANKS; THE AIRCRAFT HAS A 'NO TAKEOFF' VALUE OF 6.75 GALLONS OR LESS. THIS VALUE WAS ESTABLISHED BECAUSE OF THE POSITIONING OF THE FUEL TANK OUTLETS AND THE RESULTANT POSSIBILITY OF FUEL FLOW INTERRUPTION IN VARIOUS FLIGHT ATTITUDES. Source: NTSB Aviation Accident Database (Pre-2008 Archive) Retrieved: 2026-02-12
Verbatim from NTSB's published report. Source file
NTSB_1988_CHI88DEC07.txt.
Findings + structured fields enriched from FAA avall.mdb.
Full investigation docket on
data.ntsb.gov ↗.
Beyond the agency record
Search this event elsewhere.
Pre-filled searches into the sources where news + community discussion of aviation events lives. External sources are reported, not agency. Treat them as signal that something happened, not as fact about what happened.
Entity-clustered aviation events in the press — last 24 hr + 30-day archive.
Official agency record + docket.
Investigative docket: factual reports, photos, transcripts.
Long-running aviation incident database (Flight Safety Foundation).
Community NTSB synthesis blog — often has photos and witness reports.
Gold-standard aviation incident blog.
Aviation industry news search.
GA pilot forum — informed but rumor-prone.
GA pilot subreddit search.
Tail-number page — flight history (free tier limited).
AOPA Air Safety Institute search.
Mainstream press coverage. Recent events only.
Privacy-preserving news search.
External links open in a new tab. We don't ingest their content; we deep-link search queries.