Schweizer SGS 1-34 accident near Park City, Utah, September 18, 1983
On September 18, 1983 at about 6:15 pm local time, a Schweizer SGS 1-34 (glider), registered N7636, was substantially damaged in an accident near Park City, Utah. 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 18, 1983 · about 6:15 pm local time
- Place
- Park City, Utah · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- No one was hurt; 1 person was on board or involved.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Schweizer SGS 1-34 · all SGS 1-34s on the register
- Registration
- N7636 · no longer on the register · serial 16
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Personal flight · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
THE GLIDER DRAGGED A WING AND NOSED INTO THE GROUND BEFORE GROUND LOOPING DURING LANDING. THE PILOT SAID HE WAS LIFTED BY AN UPDRAFT DURING LANDING AND WAS RUNNING OUT OF LANDING SPACE SO HE TURNED TO AN ALTERNATE AREA. THE TURN WAS MADE AT 150-200 FT AGL & THE WINDS WERE GUSTING IN VELOCITY FROM 15 TO 25 KTS ACCORDING TO THE GROUND CREW. AS THE PLT LEVELED THE ACFT TO LAND IN A HAYFIELD THE LEFT WING DROPPED TO THE GROUND FOLLOWED BY THE NOSE. THE ACFT THEN GROUNDLOOPED.
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: commercial pilot
- Ratings: single-engine land; instructor: glider; rotorcraft: glider
- Flight time: 913 hours in all; 34 in this make and model; 12 in the last 90 days; 877 as pilot in command
- Medical certificate: Unknown
- Seat: ctr
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 1,091 hours
- Last inspection: annual inspection, October 10, 1982
- Maximum gross weight: 600 lb
- Seats: 1
- Landing gear: fixed
- Engine: (type not recorded); 0 hours total
The flight
- Departed from: 36U Heber City UT at 5:45 pm
- Flight plan: none
- Runway 0
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Wind: at 15 knots, gusting 25
- Visibility: 50 statute miles
- Sky: clear
- Temperature: 70°F (21°C), dew point 0°F (-18°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 N7636 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.