Schweizer SGS 2-33A accident near Honolulu, Hawaii, May 11, 1995
On May 11, 1995 at about 1:30 am local time, a Schweizer SGS 2-33A (glider), registered N7768S, was destroyed in an accident near Honolulu, Hawaii (Dillingham Airfield). 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 pilot's attempted flight in close proximity to terrain under gusty wind conditions at an inadequate terrain clearance altitude.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made October 5, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- May 11, 1995 · about 1:30 am local time
- Place
- Honolulu, Hawaii · Dillingham Airfield · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- 1 person had minor injuries.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Schweizer SGS 2-33A · all SGS 2-33As on the register
- Registration
- N7768S · no longer on the register · serial 138
- Damage
- Destroyed
- Flight
- Personal flight · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
AFTER BEING TOWED TO AN ALTITUDE OF 1,000 FEET MSL, THE PILOT INITIALLY CLIMBED AN ADDITIONAL 100 FEET. ABOUT 5 MINUTES LATER HE ENCOUNTERED AN AREA WHICH WAS NOT GENERATING ANY LIFT AND DECIDED TO TURN BACK TOWARD THE AIRPORT. WHILE FLYING AN UPWIND COURSE, WHICH WAS IN CLOSE PROXIMITY AND NEARLY PARALLEL TO THE NORTH SIDE OF A NEARBY RIDGE LINE, THE GLIDER ENCOUNTERED AN UNEXPECTED DOWNDRAFT. UNABLE TO MANEUVER OUT OF THE CONDITION, THE GLIDER WAS FORCED DOWN, IMPACTING STEEP, ROCKY TERRAIN. THE PILOT REPORTED THAT THE PREVAILING WINDS AT THE ACCIDENT SITE WERE GUSTING FROM THE SOUTHEAST.
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, commercial pilot
- Ratings: multi-engine land; single-engine land; single-engine sea; instrument: airplane; rotorcraft: glider
- Flight time: 15,176 hours in all; 2 in this make and model; 6,000 as pilot in command
- Medical certificate: Class 1 (valid medical--w/ waivers/lim.)
- Seat: frt
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 4,657 hours
- Last inspection: 100-hour inspection, March 29, 1995; 31 hours since
- Maximum gross weight: 1,040 lb
- Seats: 2
- Landing gear: fixed
- Engine: (type not recorded); 0 hours total
The flight
- Departed from: PHDH at 1:21 am
- Flight plan: none
- Runway 0
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Wind: from 080° at 13 knots
- Visibility: 7 statute miles
- Sky: broken clouds at 3,500 ft; scat at 2,000 ft
- Temperature: 75°F (24°C), dew point 63°F (17°C)
- Altimeter: 30.00 inHg
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 N7768S 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.