Schweizer SGS 2-33A accident near Durango, Colorado, September 4, 1983
On September 4, 1983 at about 9:00 pm local time, a Schweizer SGS 2-33A (glider), registered N7590, was substantially damaged in an accident near Durango, Colorado (Val-Air 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).
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 October 5, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- September 4, 1983 · about 9:00 pm local time
- Place
- Durango, Colorado · Val-Air · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- No one was hurt; 1 person was on board or involved.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Schweizer SGS 2-33A · all SGS 2-33As on the register
- Registration
- N7590 · no longer on the register · serial 180
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Personal flight · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
AFTER RELEASING FROM AN AERIAL TOW ABOUT 2,000 FT AGL, THE PLT WAS UNABLE TO FIND LIFTING THERMALS. THE GLIDER BEGAN TO DESCEND ABOUT 800 FPM SO THE PLT MANEUVERED TO RETURN TO THE AIRSTRIP. THE GLIDER COLLIDED WITH SEVERAL SMALL TREES SHORT OF THE RWY.
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: single-engine land; rotorcraft: glider
- Flight time: 200 hours in all; 200 in this make and model; 2 in the last 90 days
- Medical certificate: Unknown
- Seat: ctr
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 2,697 hours
- Last inspection: 100-hour inspection, May 14, 1983; 90 hours since
- Maximum gross weight: 1,200 lb
- Seats: 1
- Landing gear: fixed
- Engine: (type not recorded); 0 hours total
The flight
- Flight plan: none
- Runway 17, 3,400 ft by 100 ft
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Visibility: 75 statute miles
- Sky: broken clouds at 8,000 ft; clear
- Temperature: 79°F (26°C), dew point 54°F (12°C)
- Altimeter: 30.00 inHg
- Observation at 8:00 pm from DRO
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 N7590 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.