Mini-Nimbus dives vertically after the pilot suffers a heart attack

A pilot was fatally injured when a Mini-Nimbus tightened into a vertical dive and crashed onto a golf course beside a German airfield; the glider was destroyed. About 30 minutes into a local flight, witnesses saw it approach fast and rock its wings twice, then turn into the circuit, where the turn steepened until the glider dived vertically to the ground. An autopsy found a fresh heart attack, which the examiner judged had probably caused a sudden cardiac arrhythmia and immediate unconsciousness. No defect was found in the glider, and the weather was clear.

1. Returning from a local flight: A Mini-Nimbus had aerotow-launched at St. Michaelisdonn for a local flight and was returning after about 30 minutes.
2. Acute cardiac event in flight: During the return the pilot suffered a fresh heart attack that, per the autopsy, probably caused a sudden arrhythmia and immediate unconsciousness.
3. Fast approach, wings rocking: Witnesses saw the glider approach fast at an angle to the runway and rock its wings twice; the speed then returned to normal.
4. Turn into circuit steepens: It entered the downwind turn without any visible pull-up, but the turn grew progressively steeper.
5. Vertical dive onto a golf course: The turn tightened until the glider dived vertically onto a golf course beside the airfield; the pilot was killed and the glider destroyed.