Probable cause
The pilot's failure to extend the landing gear before landing and to use the Before Landing checklist.
NTSB analysis
The pilot in the retractable-landing gear-equipped glider reported that, during flight, he could no longer find lift, so he selected a field for landing. During the approach, he did not use the Before Landing checklist, and he forgot to extend the landing gear. The glider landed on the lower fuselage and skidded across the grass surface before it collided with a barbed wire fence.
The glider sustained substantial damage to the canopy, fuselage, and rudder.
The pilot reported that there were no mechanical malfunctions or failures with the glider that would have precluded normal operation.
Text from the NTSB. Open the NTSB docket for GAA18CA557 for the full record.
Event
- Date
- Sep 1, 2018
- Type
- Accident
- Place
- Burnet, Texas
- Highest injury
- None
- Weather
- Visual (VMC)
- Light
- Day
Schweizer SGS 1 35
- N-number
- N34107
- Category
- Glider
- Year built
- 1975
- Damage
- Substantial
- Operating rule
- Part 91 (general aviation)
- Purpose of flight
- Personal
From the NTSB aviation accident database: N-registered aircraft, events since 2008, data through Oct 28, 2026. The file is published monthly, so the latest weeks are incomplete and recent records can change. The official source is the NTSB aviation investigation search. CheckAero is independent and not affiliated with the NTSB.