Flugzeugbau DG-200 accident near Benton, Tennessee, December 29, 2001
On December 29, 2001 at about 8:00 pm local time, a Flugzeugbau DG-200 (glider), registered N5457T, was substantially damaged in an accident near Benton, Tennessee. It was a personal flight under general aviation rules (Part 91). No one was hurt; 1 person was on board or involved. The weather was visual conditions (good weather).
The NTSB's probable cause their words, unchanged
The pilot's inadvertent encounter with a downdraft while maneuvering in a ridge lift during a turn resulting in an in-flight collision with trees.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made October 5, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- December 29, 2001 · about 8:00 pm local time
- Place
- Benton, Tennessee · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- No one was hurt; 1 person was on board or involved.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Flugzeugbau DG-200
- Registration
- N5457T · no longer on the register · serial 2-57A
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Personal flight · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
The glider pilot was flying north in a ridge lift about 400 feet above a plateau area where he had previously found good thermals. He started a turn towards the front of the ridge towards a valley and encountered a severe sink rate. He continued the turn and the sink rate increased between 1,500 to 3,000 feet per minute and the glider collided with trees. The pilot did not experienced a mechanical failure or malfunction of the airframe or flight control system.
The complete narrative as the NTSB published it. The NTSB's docket holds the report as a PDF and any photographs, statements and other documents from the investigation.
The factual record from the NTSB's investigation tables, in plain English
Pilot
- Certificate: private
- Ratings: rotorcraft: glider
- Flight time: 422 hours in all; 204 in this make and model; 17 in the last 90 days; 2 in the last 30 days; 386 as pilot in command
- Last flight review: July 22, 2000
- Medical certificate: None
- Seat: frt
- Injury: no injuries
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 1,207 hours
- Last inspection: annual inspection, March 23, 2001; 79 hours since
- Maximum gross weight: 992 lb
- Seats: 1
- Landing gear: fixed
The flight
- Departed from: 92A Benton TN at 6:00 pm
- Flight plan: none
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Wind: from 350° at 10 knots
- Visibility: 10 statute miles
- Sky: clear
- Temperature: 48°F (9°C), dew point 43°F (6°C)
- Altimeter: 29.98 inHg
- Observation at 7:53 pm from CHA, 166 miles away
Injuries
| Fatal | Serious | Minor | None | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Crew | 1 |
Documents from the investigation the NTSB's docket: the evidence folder behind the report
The docket, the folder of records gathered during an investigation (maintenance records, photographs, witness statements, examinations), has not been read from the NTSB for this case yet; the list appears here once it has. Open the docket at the NTSB.
Everything on this page comes from the NTSB's public records. The narrative, probable cause and findings are the NTSB's own words; the coded tables behind the report are written out in plain English, with pilots' ages, home towns and medical details left out. The documents and photographs are the NTSB's docket, shown as the NTSB released them. This site's own text never names anyone involved. A preliminary report can change; the final report usually follows one to two years later, and the page is refreshed when it does.