ASW 27 strikes Ventus 2a in shared thermal; ASW pilot fails to egress
On 30 July 2001 during a competition near Pressath (Germany), an ASW 27 and a Ventus 2a collided at ~1,400 m while team-thermalling. Both circled in the same right-hand thermal with limited mutual lookout. The ASW 27 approached from behind and slightly below; paths crossed at ~45–50° and the aircraft collided. The ASW 27 lost ~2.45 m of left wing, entered a spin-like descent and crashed in a forest — the pilot jettisoned the canopy and released the harness but could not exit before impact. The Ventus 2a pilot bailed out, lightly injured. ASW 27 pilot fatally injured.
- Aerotow then team task flight: Both gliders launched by aerotow from Bayreuth for a competition cross-country task and flew the route together in close team flight.
- Tight team thermalling: Throughout the task the ASW 27 and Ventus 2a repeatedly used the same thermals and flight paths with minimal vertical and horizontal separation, by deliberate team-flight choice.
- Reduced mutual lookout: In the last thermal east of Pressath both pilots circled to the right with small height differences and had only limited, intermittent visual contact with each other.
- Converging circle paths: Around 17:16:53 the ASW 27 approached the Ventus 2a from behind and slightly below on a right-hand circle; their flight paths crossed at about 45–50°.
- ASW 27 left wing partly severed: On contact the ASW 27 lost approximately 2.45 m of its left wing, causing a large lift asymmetry and immediate entry into a rapid, spin-like rotational descent.
- Bailout attempted but no egress: The ASW 27 pilot jettisoned the canopy and released the harness but was unable to exit the cockpit against the rotational forces before ground impact.
- Vertical impact in forest: The ASW 27 descended almost vertically into a forested area near Pressath and was destroyed; pilot fatally injured. The Ventus 2a pilot bailed out separately and landed lightly injured under parachute.