Tail dolly left attached on DG-800 self-launch — stall-spin

After a self-launch from Schreckhof, the pilot of a DG-800B was fatally injured in a crash near Reichenbuch. The pilot launched with the tail dolly, 4.6 kg, still attached, placing CG behind the aft limit. A ground witness tried to radio a warning not to shut the engine off but got no reply. Retracting the engine at about 500 m AMSL pushed CG further aft; the aircraft lost longitudinal stability, dove vertically into a spin, and impacted farmland. No technical defects were found; the cause was operational, with combined tail-dolly mass and engine retraction taking CG past the manufacturer's aft limit.

1. Self-launch initial climb: The pilot self-launched in the DG-800B from Schreckhof on RWY 33 for a local VFR flight with the engine extended and running.
2. Tail dolly left on: During the takeoff roll and climb, the tail-mounted roll aid (Kuller) remained attached to the aircraft, adding 4.6 kg at the tail and shifting the center of gravity behind the aft limit.
3. Engine shut down: At about 500 m AMSL, the pilot shut down the engine and retracted the engine-propeller unit, further moving the already aft center of gravity rearwards.
4. Loss of stability: With the center of gravity beyond the aft limit, the motor glider in glide flight became longitudinally unstable and susceptible to stall and departure from controlled flight.
5. Vertical dive and spin: After a few seconds of straight glide with the engine off, the aircraft pitched into a vertical dive and then entered an increasingly rapid corkscrew-like motion consistent with a spin.
6. Crash - fatal: Approximately five minutes after takeoff, the motor glider impacted level farmland and was destroyed by impact and post-crash fire, fatally injuring the pilot.