Amateur-built IS-29D2 accident near Collegeville, Pennsylvania, May 11, 1984
On May 11, 1984 at about 5:20 pm local time, a amateur-built IS-29D2 (glider), registered N29DT, was destroyed in an accident near Collegeville, Pennsylvania. It was a personal flight under general aviation rules (Part 91). 1 person was killed. 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 5, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- May 11, 1984 · about 5:20 pm local time
- Place
- Collegeville, Pennsylvania · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- 1 person was killed.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Amateur-built IS-29D2
- Registration
- N29DT · no longer on the register · serial 87
- Damage
- Destroyed
- Flight
- Personal flight · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
ACCORDING TO A WITNESS WHO RAN THE WING OF THE GLIDER DURING TAKEOFF, AT 250 TO 300 FT AGL THE TOW ACFT TURNED LEFT BUT THE GLIDER MAINTAINED RWY HEADING. SHORTLY THEREAFTER THE TOW LINE RELEASED AT THE GLIDER-END AND THE GLIDER INITIATED A RIGHT TURN. AFTER APRX 45 DEG OF TURN THE GLIDER ENTERED A RIGHT SPIRAL AND NEAR VERTICAL DESCENT TO GROUND IMPACT. NO MECHANICAL MALFUNCTIONS IN EITHER ACFT OR THE TOW EQUIPMENT WERE FOUND.
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: commercial pilot
- Ratings: rotorcraft: glider
- Medical certificate: Class 3 (expired)
- Seat: ctr
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 238 hours
- Last inspection: annual inspection, April 1, 1984; 0 hours since
- Maximum gross weight: 792 lb
- Seats: 1
- Landing gear: retractable
- Engine: Unknown UNK (type not recorded); 0 hours total
The flight
- Departed from: N10 Collegeville PA at 5:20 pm
- Flight plan: none
- Runway 0
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Wind: from 150° at 15 knots
- Visibility: 8 statute miles
- Sky: scat at 5,000 ft
- Temperature: 72°F (22°C), dew point 50°F (10°C)
- Altimeter: 30.00 inHg
- Observation at 4:56 pm from PNE, 21 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 N29DT 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.