NTSB CAROL · Event
Event GAA18CA389
Registry · N134BC
FAA Aircraft Registry record.
Make / Model
SCHWEIZER SGS 1-34
Year of manufacture
1973 · 45 years old at event
Engine
NONE NONE
Seats / Engines
1 seats · 1 engine
Last airworthiness date
19780721
ADS-B equipped
Yes — Mode-S A08A29
Registrant of record
JOURNEYS AVIATION INC
Source: FAA Aircraft Registry (releasable master file).
Aircraft involved
Probable cause & findings
The student pilot’s improper landing flare in gusting crosswind conditions, which resulted in a hard landing.
Factual narrative
The solo student pilot reported that, during landing, about 10 ft above ground, the airplane was "hit by a tail gust/downdraft" and the glider landed hard. The glider sustained substantial damage to the fuselage. The automated weather observation station located on the airport reported that, about 8 minutes before the accident, the wind was from 170° at 10 knots, gusting 14 knots. The glider landed on runway 8G. The solo student pilot reported that, during landing, about 10 ft above ground, the glider was "hit by a tail gust/downdraft," then it landed hard. The glider sustained substantial damage to the fuselage. The automated weather observation station located on the airport reported that, about 8 minutes before the accident, the wind was from 170° at 10 knots, gusting to 14 knots. The pilot landed the glider on runway 8G. Source: NTSB Aviation Accident Database Retrieved: 2026-02-12
NTSB Findings
Hierarchical cause / factor breakdown from the FAA bulk avdata database. Each finding tagged C (Cause) or F (Factor).
- C Aircraft-Aircraft oper/perf/capability-Performance/control parameters-Landing flare-Not attained/maintained - C
- C Personnel issues-Task performance-Use of equip/info-Aircraft control-Student/instructed pilot - C
- — Environmental issues-Conditions/weather/phenomena-Wind-Gusts-Effect on operation
- — Environmental issues-Conditions/weather/phenomena-Wind-Crosswind-Effect on operation
Verbatim from NTSB's published report. Source file
NTSB_2018_GAA18CA389.txt.
Findings + structured fields enriched from FAA avall.mdb.
Full investigation docket on
data.ntsb.gov ↗.
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