Schweizer 2-32 accident near Vacaville, California, February 7, 1987
On February 7, 1987 at about 11:30 pm local time, a Schweizer 2-32 (glider), registered N17871, was substantially damaged in an accident near Vacaville, California. It was a business flight under general aviation rules (Part 91). No one was hurt; 3 people were on board or involved. 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
- February 7, 1987 · about 11:30 pm local time
- Place
- Vacaville, California · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- No one was hurt; 3 people were on board or involved.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Schweizer 2-32
- Registration
- N17871 · no longer on the register · serial 81
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Business flight · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
DURING A LOCAL SIGHTSEEING FLIGHT, THE PILOT WAS FLYING SOUTH APPROXIMATELY 300-500 FT ABOVE THE RIDGE LOOKING FOR LIFT. THE PILOT COULD NOT FIND SUFFICIENT LIFT IN THE AREA EAST OF THE RIDGE SO HE FLEW TO THE WEST SIDE WHERE THE GLIDER ENCOUNTERED A STRONG DOWN DRAFT. DUE TO THE LOSS OF ALTITUDE, THE PILOT WAS UNABLE TO RETURN TO THE AIRPORT. A FORCED LANDING WAS MADE ON A ROAD THAT WAS LINED WITH GRAPEVINES. THE FUSELAGE REMAINED CENTERED ON THE ROAD, HOWEVER, THE WINGS COLLIDED WITH THE LINING GRAPEVINES.
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: flight instructor, commercial pilot
- Ratings: single-engine land; instructor: glider; rotorcraft: glider
- Flight time: 292 hours in all; 21 in this make and model; 26 in the last 90 days; 6 in the last 30 days; 229 as pilot in command; 27 on instruments
- Medical certificate: None
- Seat: frt
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 2,481 hours
- Last inspection: 100-hour inspection, October 11, 1986; 85 hours since
- Maximum gross weight: 1,430 lb
- Seats: 3
- Landing gear: fixed
- Engine: None NONE (type not recorded); 0 hours total
The flight
- Departed from: CA58 Vacaville CA at 11:10 pm
- Destination: CA58
- Flight plan: none
- Runway 0
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Wind: from 030° at 11 knots
- Visibility: 15 statute miles
- Sky: scat at 20,000 ft
- Temperature: 70°F (21°C), dew point 45°F (7°C)
- Altimeter: 30.00 inHg
- Observation at 10:55 pm from SUU, 6 miles away
Injuries
| Fatal | Serious | Minor | None | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Crew | 1 | |||
| Passengers | 2 |
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.