Schweizer TG3A accident near Yoder, Kansas, October 2, 1988
On October 2, 1988 at about 7:30 pm local time, a Schweizer TG3A (glider), registered N73483, was substantially damaged in an accident near Yoder, Kansas (Sunflower 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
AN ABRUPT MANEUVER RESULTING IN A STALL/SPIN AND SUBSEQUENT AIRCRAFT CONTROL NOT BEING MAINTAINED BY THE PILOT IN COMMAND.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made October 5, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- October 2, 1988 · about 7:30 pm local time
- Place
- Yoder, Kansas · Sunflower
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- No one was hurt; 1 person was on board or involved.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Schweizer TG3A · all TG3As on the register
- Registration
- N73483 · no longer on the register · serial 51
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Personal flight · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
WHILE BEING TOWED TO ALTITUDE, THE STUDENT PILOT SAID THAT THE TOW ROPE BROKE AT ABOUT 200 TO 300 FEET AGL. HE EXECUTED A TURN FOR AN EMERGENCY LANDING, AND DURING THE TURN, STALLED THE ACFT. THE GLIDER DESCENDED UNCONTROLLED COLLIDING WITH TREES, THEN THE TERRAIN. POST ACCIDENT INVESTIGATION REVEALED THE TOW ROPE HAD BROKEN NEAR THE GLIDER TOW HOOK.
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
- Ratings: rotorcraft: glider
- Flight time: 76 hours in all; 7 in this make and model; 6 in the last 90 days; 3 in the last 30 days; 58 as pilot in command
- Medical certificate: None
- Seat: frt
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 1,388 hours
- Last inspection: annual inspection, June 18, 1988; 20 hours since
- Maximum gross weight: 857 lb
- Seats: 2
- Landing gear: fixed
- Engine: (type not recorded); 0 hours total
The flight
- Departed from: KS76 Yoder KS at 7:25 pm
- Flight plan: none
- Runway 35, 7,000 ft by 300 ft
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Wind: from 350° at 8 knots
- Visibility: 15 statute miles
- Sky: scat at 25,000 ft
- Temperature: 55°F (13°C), dew point 45°F (7°C)
- Altimeter: 30.00 inHg
- Observation at 6:50 pm from HUT, 10 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.