Schleicher AS-K13 accident near Tullahoma, Tennessee, June 25, 1983
On June 25, 1983 at about 10:30 pm local time, a Schleicher AS-K13 (glider), registered N6877, was substantially damaged in an accident near Tullahoma, Tennessee (Tullahoma airport). It was an instructional 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 NTSB has not yet published a probable cause for this accident. Investigations usually take one to two years; this page updates when the final report is released.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made November 2, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- June 25, 1983 · about 10:30 pm local time · cases in 1983
- Place
- Tullahoma, Tennessee · Tullahoma · cases near this airport · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- No one was hurt; 1 person was on board or involved.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Schleicher AS-K13 · all AS-K13s on the register
- Registration
- N6877 · no longer on the register · serial 13149
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Instructional flight · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
THE PILOT STATED THAT HIS APPROACH WAS TOO FAST AND HE BOUNCED THE ACFT DURING THE LANDING. THE GLIDER DRIFTED LEFT AND COLLIDED WITH A HAYROLL. THE COLLISION CAUSED ANOTHER SWERVE AND A SUBSEQUENT COLLISION WITH ANOTHER HAYROLL.
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: student
- Ratings: single-engine land
- Flight time: 17 hours in all; 17 in this make and model; 2 in the last 90 days; 3 as pilot in command
- Medical certificate: Unknown
- Seat: ctr
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 624 hours
- Last inspection: 100-hour inspection, May 31, 1983; 15 hours since
- Maximum gross weight: 1,060 lb
- Seats: 2
- Landing gear: fixed
- Engine: NONE (type not recorded); 0 hours total
The flight
- Departed from: THA Tullahoma TN at 10:20 pm
- Flight plan: none
- Runway 36, 5,000 ft
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Wind: from 311° at 4 knots, gusting 10
- Visibility: 10 statute miles
- Sky: scat at 3,500 ft
- Temperature: 82°F (28°C), dew point 70°F (21°C)
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 N6877 the same tail number, which may have belonged to a different aircraft at the time
Connections how this case links to the rest of the register
- N6877: not on the register today · the record of its deregistration
- Schleicher AS-K13 14 registered today · the model family and its accident history
- Schleicher 506 aircraft on the register
- Engine: NONE · as the NTSB recorded it
- Tullahoma Rgnl/Wm Northern Field · nearest airport
- Accidents and incidents in Tennessee 1,198 since 1982 · 231 in the last ten years
- Tennessee 6,535 aircraft registered
- Other NTSB records under N6877 1 records · the number may have belonged to another aircraft at the time
The whole map of how records connect · these connections as data: /graph/accident/ATL83LA243.json.
The bigger picture in Aviation Analytics: accidents over time since 1982, by model, by phase of flight and conditions, by place and on the map.
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 does not name anyone involved, its policy at this time. A preliminary report can change; the final report usually follows one to two years later, and the page is refreshed when it does.