Entwicklungsgemeinschaft PHOEBUS C accident near Yermo, California, July 6, 1984
On July 6, 1984 at about 9:15 pm local time, a Entwicklungsgemeinschaft PHOEBUS C (glider), registered N880S, was destroyed in an accident near Yermo, California (Harvard airport). 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 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
- July 6, 1984 · about 9:15 pm local time
- Place
- Yermo, California · Harvard · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- 1 person was killed.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Entwicklungsgemeinschaft PHOEBUS C
- Registration
- N880S · no longer on the register · serial 830
- Damage
- Destroyed
- Flight
- Personal flight · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
THE PILOT ENCOUNTERED ADVERSE SOARING FLIGHT CONDITIONS DURING A LONG X-COUNTRY ATTEMPT AND WAS FORCED TO DIVERT TO AN INTERMEDIATE AIRPORT. ON A LONG GLIDE TO HIS SELECTED LANDING SITE, THE PILOT ENCOUNTERED HIGH POWERLINES. TURNING TO AVOID THEM , HE LOST CONTROL AND ENTERED AN UNCONTROLLED DESCENT.
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: rotorcraft: glider
- Flight time: 285 hours in all; 171 in this make and model; 46 in the last 90 days; 21 in the last 30 days; 261 as pilot in command
- Medical certificate: None
- Seat: ctr
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 865 hours
- Last inspection: annual inspection, March 28, 1984; 71 hours since
- Maximum gross weight: 1,500 lb
- Seats: 1
- Landing gear: fixed
- Engine: (type not recorded); 0 hours total
The flight
- Departed from: L01 Llano CA at 5:50 pm
- Flight plan: none
- Runway 0, 2,640 ft by 100 ft
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Wind: from 150° at 29 knots, gusting 33
- Visibility: 35 statute miles
- Sky: broken clouds at 6,000 ft; not recorded at 6,000 ft
- Temperature: 100°F (38°C), dew point 48°F (9°C)
- Altimeter: 29.00 inHg
- Observation at 9:54 pm from DAG, 2 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.