Schweizer SGU2-22E accident near Ames, Iowa, September 16, 1984
On September 16, 1984 at about 7:30 pm local time, a Schweizer SGU2-22E (glider), registered N9920J, suffered minor damage in an accident near Ames, Iowa (Ames airport). It was an instructional flight under general aviation rules (Part 91). 1 person was seriously injured. 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 4, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- September 16, 1984 · about 7:30 pm local time
- Place
- Ames, Iowa · Ames · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- 1 person was seriously injured.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Schweizer SGU2-22E · all SGU2-22Es on the register
- Registration
- N9920J · no longer on the register · serial 248
- Damage
- Minor damage
- Flight
- Instructional flight · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
THE GLIDER PLT WHO HAD ONLY ABOUT 1 HOUR FLT TIME IN THIS MAKE OF GLIDER AND LESS THAN A HOUR TOTAL GLIDER TIME MISJUDGED THE WIND AND AFTER DRIFTING DOWNWIND WAS UNABLE TO MAKE IT BACK TO THE ARPT. A FORCED LANDING WAS MADE OFF ARPT IN A FARM FIELD.
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, student
- Ratings: single-engine land
- Flight time: 250 hours in all; 1 in this make and model; 250 as pilot in command
- Medical certificate: Class 3 (valid medical--w/ waivers/lim.)
- Seat: frt
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 2,480 hours
- Last inspection: annual inspection, May 2, 1984; 86 hours since
- Maximum gross weight: 10 lb
- Seats: 2
- Landing gear: fixed
- Engine: None NONE (type not recorded); 0 hours total
The flight
- Departed from: AMW Ames IA at 7:20 pm
- Destination: AMW Ames IA
- Flight plan: none
- Runway 0
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Wind: from 141° at 15 knots, gusting 15
- Visibility: 20 statute miles
- Sky: not recorded at 25,000 ft
- Temperature: 64°F (18°C), dew point 43°F (6°C)
- Altimeter: 30.00 inHg
- Observation at 5:50 pm from DSM, 30 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.
Other NTSB records under N9920J the same tail number, which may have belonged to a different aircraft at the time
About this page
Everything above comes from the NTSB's public accident database: the narrative, probable cause and findings are the NTSB's own words, and the coded tables behind its report (pilot, aircraft, flight, weather, injuries, sequence of events) are written out in plain English. Pilots' ages, home towns and medical details are left out on purpose. The documents and photographs are the NTSB's docket, the folder of records gathered during the investigation, shown as the NTSB released them (the NTSB redacts some personal details first) and listed under the NTSB's own titles. This site's own text never names pilots, passengers or anyone else involved. A preliminary report describes what is known soon after the event and can change; the final report, with the probable cause, usually follows one to two years later and this page is refreshed when it does. Case number MKC84FCD03.