Let L-23 accident near Sterling, Massachusetts, January 1, 2002
On January 1, 2002 at about 6:58 pm local time, a Let L-23 (glider), registered N117BB, was substantially damaged in an accident near Sterling, Massachusetts (Sterling Airport). It was an instructional 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 pilots inadequate compensation for wind conditions which resulted in an off-field landing, and the CFI's improper decision to allow the student to fly solo. Factors related to the accident were the gusting wind conditions, and the students lack of total experience in gliders.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made November 2, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- January 1, 2002 · about 6:58 pm local time · cases in 2002
- Place
- Sterling, Massachusetts · Sterling Airport · cases near this airport · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- No one was hurt; 1 person was on board or involved.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Let L-23 · all L-23s on the register
- Registration
- N117BB · registry record · serial 917815
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Instructional flight · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
As the glider neared the airport, the student pilot entered the downwind leg further out from the runway than she normally would. As the glider was turned on to the base leg, the student realized that she would not make the runway and elected to perform a forced landing to a two-lane highway. The glider touched down on the southbound lane of the elevated roadway, impacted a metal guardrail, and came to rest upright. The student had accumulated about 13 hours of dual instruction in gliders, with 7 or 8 different flight instructors, and about 1.4 hours of solo time. The student added that previous to the accident flight, she had no plans to fly solo due to the wind conditions. After her flight instructor reassured her that the pervious dual flight had been good, and student climbed into the glider alone. The recorded weather at a nearby airport, about the time of the accident, included winds from 250 degrees at 13 knots, gusts to 22 knots.
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
Dual student
- Certificate: student
- Flight time: 17 hours in all; 17 in this make and model; 10 in the last 90 days; 4 in the last 30 days; 2 as pilot in command
- Medical certificate: None
- Seat: frt
- Injury: no injuries
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 911 hours
- Last inspection: annual inspection, August 27, 2001; 25 hours since
- Maximum gross weight: 1,124 lb
- Seats: 2
- Landing gear: retractable
- Engine:; 0 hours total
The flight
- Departed from: 3B3 Sterling MA at 6:30 pm
- Flight plan: none
- Runway 34, 3,010 ft by 40 ft
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Wind: from 250° at 18 knots, gusting 22
- Visibility: 10 statute miles
- Sky: a few clouds at 4,900 ft
- Temperature: 30°F (-1°C), dew point 9°F (-13°C)
- Altimeter: 29.93 inHg
- Observation at 7:52 pm from FIT, 5 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.
Connections how this case links to the rest of the register
- N117BB on the register today · the tail number may have moved to another aircraft since
- Let L-23 83 registered today · the model family and its accident history
- Let 178 aircraft on the register
- Engine: · as the NTSB recorded it
- Sterling Airport · nearest airport
- Accidents and incidents in Massachusetts 987 since 1982 · 90 in the last ten years
- Massachusetts 2,645 aircraft registered
The whole map of how records connect · these connections as data: /graph/accident/NYC02LA046.json.
The bigger picture in Aviation Analytics: accidents over time since 1982, by model, by phase of flight and conditions, by place and on the map.
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 does not name anyone involved, its policy at this time. A preliminary report can change; the final report usually follows one to two years later, and the page is refreshed when it does.