Amateur-built TERN accident near Refugio, Texas, August 8, 1987
On August 8, 1987 at about 6:30 pm local time, a amateur-built TERN (glider), registered N38826, was substantially damaged in an accident near Refugio, Texas (Rooke Field). It was a personal flight under general aviation rules (Part 91). 1 person had minor injuries. 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
- August 8, 1987 · about 6:30 pm local time
- Place
- Refugio, Texas · Rooke Field · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- 1 person had minor injuries.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Amateur-built TERN
- Registration
- N38826 · no longer on the register · serial WMB/WTM40-83
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Personal flight · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
ON AUGUST 8, 1987, A BURGE TERN, N38826 IMPACTED A TRANSMISSION WIRE AND SUBSEQUENTLY, THE TERRAIN WHILE ATTEMPTING A FORCED LANDING TO A FIELD APPROXIMATELY 7 MILES WEST OF REFUGIO, TEXAS. THE HOMEBUILT GLIDER HAD FLOWN APPROXIMATELY 18 MILES NORTHWEST OF REFUGIO WHEN IT ENCOUNTERED A LOSS OF THERMAL LIFT AND TURNED BACK TOWARD REFUGIO. VISUAL METEOROLOGICAL CONDITIONS PREVAILED. THE ACFT WAS SUBSTANTIALLY DAMAGED. HOWEVER, THE PILOT RECEIVED ONLY MINOR INJURIES.
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: 175 hours in all; 90 in this make and model; 8 in the last 90 days; 142 as pilot in command
- Medical certificate: None
- Seat: frt
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 90 hours
- Last inspection: annual inspection, August 1, 1987; 1 hours since
- Seats: 1
- Landing gear: fixed
- Engine: Unknown UNKNOWN (type not recorded); 0 hours total
The flight
- Departed from: RFG Refugio TX at 5:30 pm
- Destination: RFG Refugio TX
- Flight plan: none
- Runway 0
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Wind: from 095° at 15 knots
- Visibility: 20 statute miles
- Sky: scat at 4,000 ft
- Temperature: 97°F (36°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.
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.