Pdps Pzl-Bielsko SZD-55-1 accident near Uvalde, Texas, August 12, 2001
On August 12, 2001 at about 10:45 pm local time, a Pdps Pzl-Bielsko SZD-55-1 (glider), registered N55VW, was destroyed in an accident near Uvalde, Texas (Uvalde Garner Field). 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 failure to maintain aircraft control during the base turn, which resulted in an inadvertant stall/spin.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made October 5, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- August 12, 2001 · about 10:45 pm local time
- Place
- Uvalde, Texas · Uvalde Garner Field · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- 1 person was killed.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Pdps Pzl-Bielsko SZD-55-1 · all SZD-55-1s on the register
- Registration
- N55VW · registry record · serial 55119203792
- Damage
- Destroyed
- Flight
- Personal flight · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
The commercial pilot was completing the third leg of a soaring 300 km triangle. The glider owner, who was in contact with the pilot via radio, reported that the pilot stated he had the field in sight approximately 8 miles from the airport. The glider entered the traffic pattern for runway 15 and was turning base when the owner observed it enter a spin. A witness reported that the glider banked, "appeared to have stalled, and spiraled counter-clockwise" in a nose low attitude into the ground. Another witness, located approximately a block from the accident site, stated that she "looked up and saw the glider spinning counter clockwise very fast and falling nose first." The glider impacted the ground and came to rest approximately 1/4 mile from the approach end of runway. The pilot had accumulated approximately 270 total glider flight hours and 5 flight hours in the same make and model as the accident aircraft. No pre-impact anomalies were noted with the glider during the examination.
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: multi-engine land; single-engine land; instructor: glider; instrument: airplane; rotorcraft: glider
- Flight time: 470 hours in all; 5 in this make and model; 310 as pilot in command
- Last flight review: May 22, 2001
- Medical certificate: Class 2 (valid medical--no waivers/lim.)
- Seat: ctr
- Injury: fatal
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 958.7 hours
- Last inspection: annual inspection, August 11, 2001; 104 hours since
- Maximum gross weight: 1,103 lb
- Seats: 1
- Landing gear: fixed
- Engine:; 0 hours total
The flight
- Departed from: UVA Uvalde TX at 7:15 pm
- Destination: Uvalde TX
- Flight plan: none
- Runway 15, 5,255 ft by 100 ft
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Wind: from 130° at 8 knots
- Visibility: 10 statute miles
- Sky: clear
- Temperature: 99°F (37°C), dew point 61°F (16°C)
- Altimeter: 30.02 inHg
- Observation at 10:51 pm from HDO, 30 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.
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.