Elan/Glaser Dirks DG-300 accident near Brownsboro, Alabama, October 16, 2005
On October 16, 2005 at about 8:30 pm local time, a Elan/Glaser Dirks DG-300 (glider), registered N300HX, was substantially damaged in an accident near Brownsboro, Alabama (Brownsboro airport). It was a personal flight under general aviation rules (Part 91). 1 person was killed. The weather was visual conditions (good weather).
The NTSB's probable cause their words, unchanged
The pilot's misjudgment of distance/altitude on final approach which resulted in an undershoot of the runway, and an in-flight collision with a embankment. A factor was the dirt bank/rising terrain.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made October 5, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- October 16, 2005 · about 8:30 pm local time
- Place
- Brownsboro, Alabama · Brownsboro · map
- Type
- Accident · collision on the ground
- Injuries
- 1 person was killed.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Elan/Glaser Dirks DG-300 · all DG-300s on the register
- Registration
- N300HX · no longer on the register · serial DG-300
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Personal flight · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
The pilot of the glider was making an approach to runway 27 when he misjudged the distance and collided with an road embankment 300-feet short of the runway threshold. Post-accident examination of the accident site revealed the glider slid over a road embankment perpendicular to the runway approach threshold and came to rest on the other side of the road. The fuselage of the glider was buckled.
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
- Medical certificate: None
- Seat: frt
- Injury: serious injuries
The aircraft
- Last inspection: inspection type not recorded
- Seats: 1
- Landing gear: fixed
- Engine:; 0 hours total
The flight
- Departed from: 3M5 Brownsboro AL at 9:00 pm
- Destination: 3M5 Brownsboro AL
- Flight plan: none
- Runway 27, 2,180 ft by 160 ft
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Wind: from 010° at 9 knots
- Visibility: 10 statute miles
- Sky: clear
- Temperature: 75°F (24°C), dew point 34°F (1°C)
- Altimeter: 30.09 inHg
- Observation at 9:53 pm from HSV, 9 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.
Other NTSB records under N300HX the same tail number, which may have belonged to a different aircraft at the time
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.