Schweizer SGS-2-33A accident near Windsor, Virginia, September 25, 2005
On September 25, 2005 at about 6:40 pm local time, a Schweizer SGS-2-33A (glider), registered N33964, was substantially damaged in an accident near Windsor, Virginia. 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 solo student pilot's loss of control during landing.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made October 5, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- September 25, 2005 · about 6:40 pm local time
- Place
- Windsor, Virginia · 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
- N33964 · no longer on the register · serial 367
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Personal flight · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
The student pilot of a Schweizer SGS 2-33A glider was on her first solo flight. The pilot released the glider from the tow plane about 3000 feet mean sea level, and upon returning to the gliderport, descended below traffic pattern altitude because she "misread her altimeter." According to witnesses, the glider appeared "very low" on the base leg. The pilot overflew the runway approach path, turned "too sharply" to align with the runway centerline, and "[the glider] fell out of the sky." The glider overflew the runway and struck a hangar wall, a tent support post, and came to rest on top of two ground support vehicles. The pilot reported that there were no deficiencies with the performance and handling of the glider.
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
Dual student
- Certificate: student
- Flight time: 10 hours in all; 10 in this make and model
- Last flight review: July 1, 2005
- Medical certificate: None
- Seat: frt
- Injury: no injuries
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 4,967 hours
- Last inspection: annual inspection, March 1, 2005
- Maximum gross weight: 1,040 lb
- Seats: 2
- Landing gear: fixed
- Engine:; 0 hours total
The flight
- Departed from: 3VA8 Windsor VA at 2:33 pm
- Destination: 3VA8 Windsor VA
- Flight plan: none
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Wind: from 160° at 5 knots
- Sky: clear
- Temperature: 91°F (33°C), dew point 63°F (17°C)
- Altimeter: 30.00 inHg
- Observation at 6:41 pm from KSFQ, 11 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.
Other NTSB records under N33964 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.