Wsk Pzl Krosno KR-03A accident near Kutztown, Pennsylvania, February 10, 1999
On February 10, 1999 at about 7:15 pm local time, a Wsk Pzl Krosno KR-03A (glider), registered N210C, was substantially damaged in an accident near Kutztown, Pennsylvania (Kutztown Airport). It was an instructional flight under general aviation rules (Part 91). 1 person had minor injuries; 1 other was unhurt. The weather was visual conditions (good weather).
The NTSB's probable cause their words, unchanged
was the in-flight encounter with thermal sink over unsuitable terrain for landing.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made October 5, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- February 10, 1999 · about 7:15 pm local time
- Place
- Kutztown, Pennsylvania · Kutztown Airport · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- 1 person had minor injuries; 1 other was unhurt.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Wsk Pzl Krosno KR-03A
- Registration
- N210C · registry record · serial 03-15
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Instructional flight · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
The flight instructor flew the glider earlier in the day and experienced '...a lot of lift...' and expected similar conditions for the dual instructional flight. He and the student were released off tow, encountered lift, and climbed to 4,000 feet. There, the glider experienced almost constant sink, as indicated by the variometer, and an off airport landing to hilly terrain was required. The glider experienced a hard landing on ascending terrain. The flight instructor reported 13,481 hours of flight experience, 380 of which was in gliders.
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: airline transport pilot, flight instructor, commercial pilot
- Ratings: multi-engine land; single-engine land; single-engine sea; instructor: airplane multi-engine; instructor: airplane single-engine; instructor: glider; instructor: instrument airplane; instrument: airplane; rotorcraft: glider
- Flight time: 13,481 hours in all; 61 in this make and model; 82 in the last 90 days; 38 in the last 30 days; 11,669 as pilot in command; 10,761 on instruments
- Medical certificate: Class 2 (valid medical--w/ waivers/lim.)
- Seat: rear
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 817 hours
- Last inspection: annual inspection, October 5, 1998; 90 hours since
- Maximum gross weight: 1,190 lb
- Seats: 2
- Landing gear: fixed
- Engine: (type not recorded); 0 hours total
The flight
- Departed from: N31 at 6:50 pm
- Flight plan: none
- Runway 35, 2,500 ft by 50 ft
- A second pilot was aboard
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Wind: from 320° at 12 knots, gusting 19
- Visibility: 40 statute miles
- Sky: scat at 20,000 ft
- Temperature: 52°F (11°C), dew point 27°F (-3°C)
- Altimeter: 30.00 inHg
- Observation at 6:45 pm from RDG, 10 miles away
Injuries
| Fatal | Serious | Minor | None | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Crew | 1 | 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.