Schweizer SGS 2-33 accident near Jacksonville, Florida, May 6, 2000
On May 6, 2000 at about 6:30 pm local time, a Schweizer SGS 2-33 (glider), registered N5738S, was substantially damaged in an accident near Jacksonville, Florida (Herlong airport). 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 student pilot's misjudgment of the aircraft's altitude and subsequent maneuver to avoid an obstacle, that resulted in a loss of airspeed, an inadvertent stall, and an inflight loss of control, which resulted in damage to the aircraft during landing.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made October 5, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- May 6, 2000 · about 6:30 pm local time
- Place
- Jacksonville, Florida · Herlong · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- No one was hurt; 1 person was on board or involved.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Schweizer SGS 2-33 · all SGS 2-33s on the register
- Registration
- N5738S · no longer on the register · serial 80
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Personal flight · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
The student pilot stated that he was performing steep turns to dissipate altitude and land, but ended up being low, with wires impeding his path of flight. The student further stated that as he maneuvered to avoid the wires, the glider lost lift, and fell towards the ground. The student said he then lowered the nose to avoid landing empennage first, but during the landing the glider was damaged. An FAA inspector examined the accident aircraft, and stated that during the landing the left wing hit a tree and the spar was damaged.
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: student
- Flight time: 37 hours in all; 14 in this make and model; 4 in the last 90 days; 1 in the last 30 days
- Medical certificate: None
- Seat: frt
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 2,841 hours
- Last inspection: annual inspection, May 1, 2000
- Maximum gross weight: 1,040 lb
- Seats: 2
- Landing gear: fixed
- Engine: (type not recorded); 0 hours total
The flight
- Departed from: 23J at 6:00 pm
- Flight plan: none
- Runway 0
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Wind: from 050° at 10 knots, gusting 15
- Visibility: 10 statute miles
- Sky: clear
- Temperature: 79°F (26°C), dew point 61°F (16°C)
- Altimeter: 30.00 inHg
- Observation at 6:53 pm from CRG, 8 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.