DG-300 Elan stall in turn to final — low+slow with late gear extension

After a winch launch at a local competition near Malsch, the pilot of a DG-300 Elan was fatally injured. The pilot circled hunting thermals and reached base position already low at about 160 m AGL versus a 200 m norm, with about 3 m/s sink. In the right turn to final, groundspeed decayed from about 80 to 62 km/h with the gear still retracted; gear was extended after rollout. The glider began a left turn, dropped the right wing, stalled, and impacted forest steeply. The pilot had about 30 hours in 24 months and none in the previous 11.

1. Winch launch and circuit: The DG-300 launched by winch at 12:07 for a local cross-country competition flight and then flew a right-hand circuit while unsuccessfully searching for thermals, reaching only about 320 m above ground at release.
2. Low and slow on downwind: On downwind abeam threshold 07 the glider was already unusually low and slow, at about 160 m height with a sink rate around 3 m/s, below the locally customary height of about 200 m.
3. Speed decay in base turn: During the right turn from base to final with the gear still retracted, the groundspeed decreased from about 80 km/h to about 62 km/h, approaching the calculated stall speed (~67 km/h) for the flight weight.
4. Gear extension after rollout: After rolling out onto final the pilot extended the landing gear, further increasing drag while already at a low airspeed and low height.
5. Wing drop and stall: Shortly after gear extension the glider entered a left turn, then abruptly rolled off to the right and departed controlled flight, consistent with an aerodynamic stall and incipient spin from the rearward CG configuration.
6. Limited recent flying practice: BFU noted ~30 h flown in the last 24 months and no logged flying in the 11 months before the accident; fellow pilots described him as struggling in non-routine situations.
7. Steep impact in forest — fatal: Around 12:11 the glider impacted a nearby wooded area in a steep nose-down attitude and was destroyed; the pilot was severely injured and died two days later in hospital.