Schweizer SGS 2-33A accident near Plymouth, Massachusetts, July 24, 1985
On July 24, 1985 at about 6:05 pm local time, a Schweizer SGS 2-33A (glider), registered N2039T, was substantially damaged in an accident near Plymouth, Massachusetts (Plymoth 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
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
- July 24, 1985 · about 6:05 pm local time
- Place
- Plymouth, Massachusetts · Plymoth
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- No one was hurt; 1 person was on board or involved.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Schweizer SGS 2-33A · all SGS 2-33As on the register
- Registration
- N2039T · registry record · serial 469
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Personal flight · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
THE AIRCRAFT WAS TOWED TO AN ALT OF 3000 FT. THE PLT SET UP FOR LANDING AND ENTERED THE PATTERN AT THE INITIAL POINT AT ABOUT 1200 FT. THE APCH WENT NORMALLY UNTIL THE BASE LEG.AFTER TURNING ONTO THE BASE LEG, THE PLT EXPERIENCED A HIGH SINK RATE. THE PLT ATTEMPTED TO EXTEND THE GLIDE BY INCREASING THE AIRSPEED AND TURNING DIRECTLY TO THE FINAL LEG. THE ACFT COLLIDED SHORT OF THE RWY IN A WOODED AREA.
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, private
- Ratings: multi-engine land; single-engine land; instructor: airplane single-engine; instrument: airplane
- Flight time: 3,500 hours in all; 3 in this make and model; 23 in the last 90 days; 3,295 as pilot in command
- Medical certificate: Class 2 (valid medical--no waivers/lim.)
- Seat: frt
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 1,658 hours
- Last inspection: 100-hour inspection, May 20, 1985; 46 hours since
- Maximum gross weight: 1,040 lb
- Seats: 2
- Landing gear: fixed
- Engine: None NONE (type not recorded); 0 hours total
- Operator: Yankee Aviation Serivices
The flight
- Flight plan: none
- Runway 24, 2,000 ft by 50 ft
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Wind: from 012° at 12 knots
- Visibility: 10 statute miles
- Sky: clear
- Temperature: 88°F (31°C), dew point 0°F (-18°C)
- Altimeter: 30.00 inHg
- Observation at 6:05 pm from PYM, 1 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.