| Crash location | 34.978056°N, 106.000000°W |
| Nearest city | Moriarty, NM
34.990050°N, 106.049189°W 2.9 miles away |
| Tail number | N753R |
|---|---|
| Accident date | 10 Jul 2018 |
| Aircraft type | SCHEMPP-HIRTH Flugzeugbau Gmbh Ventus 3F |
| Additional details: | None |
On July 10, 2018, about 1507 mountain daylight time, a Schempp-Hirth Flugzenbau GMBH Ventus 3F motorized glider, N753R, impacted terrain 1/2 mile southeast of the Moriarty Municipal Airport (0E0), Moriarty, New Mexico. The private pilot sustained fatal injuries and the glider was substantially damaged. The airplane was registered to a private individual and operated by the private pilot under the provisions of Title 14 Code of Federal Regulations Part 91. Visual meteorological conditions prevailed, and no flight plan was filed for the personal flight that originated from 0E0 about 1352.
The glider was reported missing when the pilot did not return to 0E0 when expected. A search for the glider was initiated. A tow plane flying in the area found the glider about 1945.
The glider was equipped with a FLARM electronic flight collision alerting device, which records flight track, altitude, and airspeed. About 11 seconds prior to impact with the ground, the glider entered a left hand descending spiral at an airspeed of 48 knots, which continued to ground impact.