Burkhart Grob G102 Club Astir IIIB accident near Highland, Illinois, September 10, 2003
On September 10, 2003 at about 9:30 pm local time, a Burkhart Grob G102 Club Astir IIIB (glider), registered N424BG, was substantially damaged in an accident near Highland, Illinois (Highland-Winet Airport). 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).
Preview. This page is not yet listed for search engines.
The NTSB's probable cause their words, unchanged
The pilot encountering unsuitable terrain during an off-airport landing. A factor to the accident was the high vegetation.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made September 29, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- September 10, 2003 · about 9:30 pm local time
- Place
- Highland, Illinois · Highland-Winet Airport · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- No one was hurt; 1 person was on board or involved.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Burkhart Grob G102 Club Astir IIIB
- Registration
- N424BG · registry record · serial 5548CB
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Personal flight · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
The glider ground looped during an off-airport landing after contacting high vegetation. The pilot reported he encountered a strong and prolonged downdraft, which resulted in the glider not maintaining altitude. Because of the loss of altitude, the pilot elected to perform an off-airport landing. During landing, the wingtip of the glider contacted vegetation, which resulted in a ground loop and the glider impacted terrain.
The NTSB's narratives can run to many pages; this is the opening. Read the full report at the NTSB.
Other NTSB records under N424BG the same tail number, which may have belonged to a different aircraft at the time
About this page
Everything above comes from the NTSB's public accident database and is rewritten in plain English only where the NTSB used codes; the probable cause and narrative are the NTSB's own words. This site never names pilots, passengers or anyone else involved. A preliminary report describes what is known soon after the event and can change; the final report, with the probable cause, usually follows one to two years later and this page is refreshed when it does. Case number CHI03LA317.