Accident Overview
On September 12, 2009, at 1453 Pacific daylight time, a Schweizer SGS 1-34 glider, registration N7656, impacted the ground in a nose-down attitude following a separation of the tow line. The accident occurred at Skylark Field Airport (CA89), Lake Elsinore, California. The pilot/owner operated the glider under 14 CFR Part 91 as a personal flight. The pilot, the sole occupant, was killed. The glider sustained substantial damage. Visual meteorological conditions prevailed, and no flight plan had been filed.
Witness Accounts
A Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) airworthiness inspector interviewed witnesses and the tow airplane pilot. The tow pilot reported that during the takeoff roll, he was manipulating the flight controls due to what he thought was either a crosswind or the movement of the glider. The tow plane lifted off at about 65 mph. He felt what he thought was slack in the tow line and tried to slow down using back pressure. He then felt the airplane surge forward as if the tow line had been released. Looking back, he saw the glider in a sharp right turn and then hit the ground. The tow plane pilot noted his altitude at the time was between 225 and 250 feet.
Ground witnesses reported that from their viewpoint, the glider released from the tow airplane, veered sharply to the right, and entered a nose dive before impacting the ground. One witness noted that while still on the ground, the glider was pulling to the right but corrected itself before liftoff.
Inspection Findings
During inspection, the FAA inspector established flight control continuity in the glider. The tow line had broken at the weak link. The link was in good condition with no signs of wear. The weak link is a safety line designed to break under sudden or extreme loads to protect the glider's airframe, and it can break at low altitude, causing an inadvertent release.
Pilot Information
The 70-year-old pilot held a pilot certificate with ratings for glider aero tow only at the time of the accident. He held a third-class medical certificate issued April 7, 2008, with a limitation to wear corrective lenses. A reissuance of his private pilot certificate dated May 21, 2009, showed ratings for airplane single engine land and sea, and glider. His logbook indicated an estimated 192.9 hours of glider time, with 15.6 hours logged between February and August 2009. His estimated total flying time was 817.7 hours.
Medical and Pathological Information
The Riverside County Sheriff-Coroner completed an autopsy on September 15, 2009, listing the cause of death as multiple blunt force trauma. The coroner's report noted that the pilot initially survived the accident but succumbed to his injuries during surgery. According to the pilot's wife, he had flown gliders for over 30 years, was not taking prescription medication, was blind in his right eye, but did not need corrective lenses. The FAA Forensic Toxicology Research Team tested specimens and found no carbon monoxide, cyanide, or volatiles. Atropine and lidocaine were detected in blood, and lidocaine in urine.