Schempp-Hirth VENTUS-B accident near Waitsfield, Vermont, June 19, 1985
On June 19, 1985 at about 7:10 pm local time, a Schempp-Hirth VENTUS-B (glider), registered N240WT, was destroyed in an accident near Waitsfield, Vermont. 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 November 2, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- June 19, 1985 · about 7:10 pm local time · cases in 1985
- Place
- Waitsfield, Vermont
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- 1 person was killed.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Schempp-Hirth VENTUS-B · all VENTUS-Bs on the register
- Registration
- N240WT · no longer on the register · serial 6/1
- Damage
- Destroyed
- Flight
- Personal flight · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
THIS GLIDER WAS INVOLVED IN A SOARING CHAMPIONSHIP COURSE. ABOUT 52 MINUTES AFTER STARTING THE COURSE WITNESSES OBSERVED THE AIRCRAFT MANEUVERING FOR A LANDING ON AN OPEN FIELD. WHILE IN A STEEP BANK THE AIRCRAFT STALLED AND IMPACTED THE GROUND.
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
- Ratings: rotorcraft: glider
- Flight time: 286 hours in all; 198 in this make and model; 15 in the last 90 days; 15 in the last 30 days; 269 as pilot in command
- Medical certificate: Unknown
- Seat: ctr
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 382 hours
- Last inspection: annual inspection, May 7, 1985; 17 hours since
- Maximum gross weight: 1,102 lb
- Seats: 1
- Landing gear: fixed
- Engine: Unknown UNK (type not recorded); 0 hours total
The flight
- Departed from: QB7 Warren VT at 5:06 pm
- Flight plan: none
- Runway 0
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Wind: from 200° at 10 knots, gusting 20
- Visibility: 20 statute miles
- Sky: broken clouds at 4,500 ft; scat at 4,500 ft
- Temperature: 0°F (-18°C), dew point 0°F (-18°C)
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
- N240WT: not on the register today · the record of its deregistration
- Schempp-Hirth VENTUS-B 28 registered today · the model family and its accident history
- Schempp-Hirth 516 aircraft on the register
- Engine: Unknown UNK · as the NTSB recorded it
- Accidents and incidents in Vermont 248 since 1982 · 35 in the last ten years
- Vermont 676 aircraft registered
The whole map of how records connect · these connections as data: /graph/accident/NYC85FA152.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.