NTSB CAROL · Event
Event LAX98LA293
Aircraft involved
Probable cause & findings
The failure of the pilot to maintain sufficient airspeed which resulted in a inadvertent stall/spin.
Factual narrative
On September 14, 1998, at 1408 hours Pacific daylight time, a PDPS PZL-Bielsko SZD-59 glider, N59SE, impacted hilly terrain 2 miles northeast of the Truckee-Tahoe Airport, Truckee, California. The aircraft was destroyed and the private pilot, the sole occupant, suffered serious injuries. The personal flight originated at the Truckee Airport at 1352, and no flight plan was filed. Visual meteorological conditions prevailed. The pilot reported that within 5 to 10 minutes of tow release, he was approximately 350 feet over the trees and was having trouble gaining lift. He reported that he made a 180-degree turn, slowed his airspeed to 46 knots, and applied "excessive rudder" in the turn. The glider entered a spin and subsequently impacted a grove of pine trees that were approximately 70 feet agl. The pilot did not report experiencing any mechanical discrepancies with the aircraft prior to the accident, but stated that he should have monitored his airspeed more carefully, and should have been more careful with turn coordination. The pilot was approximately 350 feet over the trees and was having trouble gaining lift. He reported that he made a turn, slowed his airspeed to 46 knots, and applied excessive rudder in the turn. The glider entered a spin and subsequently impacted a grove of pine trees that were approximately 70 feet agl. The pilot did not report experiencing any mechanical discrepancies, but stated that he should have monitored his airspeed more carefully and should have been more careful with turn coordination. Source: NTSB Aviation Accident Database (Pre-2008 Archive) Retrieved: 2026-02-12
Verbatim from NTSB's published report. Source file
NTSB_1998_LAX98LA293.txt.
Findings + structured fields enriched from FAA avall.mdb.
Full investigation docket on
data.ntsb.gov ↗.
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Related research
What the literature says.
Academic papers and agency reports matching this event's aircraft type or causal vocabulary (stall). Sourced from NASA NTRS, NTSB Safety Studies, FAA CAMI, AOPA Air Safety Institute, Embry-Riddle Scholarly Commons, arXiv, and the Semantic Scholar academic graph.
- NASA NTRS 2026 · Conference Paper
Computational Analysis of Steady State Aerodynamics of Transonic Truss-Braced Wing Configuration in Deep Stall
This study presents a computational investigation of steady state aerodynamics of the Subsonic Ultra-Green Aircraft Research (SUGAR) Transonic Truss-Braced Wing (TTBW) configuration over a wide range …
- arXiv 2023 · arXiv preprint
Automating Bird Diverter Installation through Multi-Aerial Robots and Signal Temporal Logic Specifications
This paper tackles the task assignment and trajectory generation problem for bird diverter installation using a fleet of multi-rotors.
- arXiv 2023 · arXiv preprint
Variation of Critical Crystallization Pressure for the Formation of Square Ice in Graphene Nanocapillaries
Two-dimensional square ice in graphene nanocapillaries at room temperature is a fascinating phenomenon and has been confirmed experimentally.
- arXiv 2023 · arXiv preprint
Polycrystallinity enhances stress build-up around ice
Damage caused by freezing wet, porous materials is a widespread problem, but is hard to predict or control. Here, we show that polycrystallinity makes a great difference to the stress build-up process…
- arXiv 2022 · arXiv preprint
Enhanced Prediction of Three-dimensional Finite Iced Wing Separated Flow Near Stall
Icing on three-dimensional wings causes severe flow separation near stall. Standard improved delayed detached eddy simulation (IDDES) is unable to correctly predict the separating reattaching flow due…
- Embry-Riddle Scholarly Commons 2021 · Journal article (JAAER)
Analysis on the Negative Emotional, Physiological, and Cognitive Responses Elicited from of the Activation of a Stall Alarm
Failing to identify an aerodynamic stall can lead to the inability of an aircraft to sustain flight. To warn pilots of an impending or fully-developed stall, many aircraft have safety devices installe…
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