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ERA22LA196

2022-04-16 · Zebulon, North Carolina, United States · Minor · 1 aircraft · Status: Completed

Airport 7NC5

Current FAA registration · N7784S

Make / Model
SCHWEIZER SGS 2-33A
Year of manufacture
1969 · 53 years old at event
Engine
NONE NONE
Seats / Engines
2 seats · 1 engine
Last airworthiness date
19690523
ADS-B equipped
Yes — Mode-S AA89B4

Source: FAA Aircraft Registry (releasable master file).

Aircraft involved

Probable cause & findings

The flight instructor’s failure to maintain directional control with a quartering tailwind.

Factual narrative

The flight instructor and student pilot were practicing a tow rope failure and were landing the glider with a light, quartering tailwind. On final approach the glider drifted right of the runway centerline and just before touchdown, the right wing struck a tree, which resulted in substantial damage to the right wing and canopy. The flight instructor reported that the airplane had no preimpact mechanical malfunctions or failures that would have precluded normal operation. Source: NTSB Aviation Accident Database Retrieved: 2026-02-12

NTSB Findings

FAA avdata. C = Cause, F = Factor.

  • — Personnel issues-Task performance-Use of equip/info-Aircraft control-Instructor/check pilot
  • — Aircraft-Aircraft oper/perf/capability-Performance/control parameters-Lateral/bank control-Not attained/maintained
  • — Environmental issues-Conditions/weather/phenomena-Wind-Tailwind-Response/compensation
  • — Environmental issues-Conditions/weather/phenomena-Wind-Tailwind-Awareness of condition

Verbatim from NTSB's published report. Source file NTSB_2022_ERA22LA196.txt. Findings + structured fields enriched from FAA avall.mdb. Full investigation docket on data.ntsb.gov ↗.

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Related research

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