NTSB CAROL · Event
Event NYC94LA155
Registry · N245JD
FAA Aircraft Registry record.
Make / Model
ROLLADEN-SCHNEIDER LS 4A
Year of manufacture
1983 · 11 years old at event
Engine
NONE NONE
Seats / Engines
1 seats · 1 engine
Last airworthiness date
19890821
ADS-B equipped
Yes — Mode-S A2435E
Registrant of record
STALLMAN JON M
Source: FAA Aircraft Registry (releasable master file).
Aircraft involved
Probable cause & findings
THE PILOT'S FAILURE TO MAINTAIN AIRSPEED WHICH RESULTED IN AN INADVERTENT STALL AND INFLIGHT COLLISION WITH TERRAIN. FACTORS WERE A LOSS OF LIFT AND THE PILOT'S IN-FLIGHT DECISION TO MANEUVER TOO CLOSE TO THE RIDGE.
Factual narrative
On August 7, 1994 at 1400 eastern daylight time, N245JD, a Rolladen-Schnieder LS-4A glider, collided with trees on high terrain, in Franconia, New Hampshire. Visual meteorological conditions existed. The certificated commercial pilot, the sole occupant, was not injured. The glider was substantially damaged. The departure point was Franconia. The flight was operated under 14 CFR Part 91. Shortly after the pilot released from the towplane, he circled in a thermal southwest of the peak of Cannon Mountain. According to the pilot, "I started to thermal in a counter-clockwise circle. As I came around one rotation, the lift changed to sink abruptly." The pilot then lowered the nose of the aircraft and steepened the turn to avoid the ridge; however, the glider stalled, descended, and impacted trees on the ridge. The pilot stated the accident could have been prevented had he not established the thermal circle so close to the ridge, causing him to be unable to adequately maneuver in (south west blowing) air. THE GLIDER PILOT HAD JUST RELEASED FROM THE TOW PLANE. HE STARTED A LEFT CIRCLING CLIMB IN A THERMAL. ACCORDING TO THE PILOT, AFTER CIRCLING ONCE, THE LIFT CHANGED SUDDENLY. THE GLIDER SANK ABRUPTLY. THE PILOT, IN HIS ATTEMPT TO AVOID THE RIDGE INADVERTENTLY STALLED THE AIRCRAFT. THE AIRCRAFT DESCENDED AND COLLIDED WITH TREES. THE PILOT STATED THE ACCIDENT COULD HAVE BEEN PREVENTED HAD HE NOT ESTABLISHED THE THERMAL CIRCLE SO CLOSE TO THE RIDGE. Source: NTSB Aviation Accident Database (Pre-2008 Archive) Retrieved: 2026-02-12
Verbatim from NTSB's published report. Source file
NTSB_1994_NYC94LA155.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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