Grunau Baby II spins on approach, strikes tree during recovery

The pilot of a Grunau Baby II was lightly injured near Gruyères Aérodrome (Switzerland) and the aircraft was seriously damaged. He held 698 hours total but only 40 minutes on type, all flown in the prior 90 days. On approach the glider entered a spin at roughly 1,000 m MSL, about 270 m above the airfield. During the recovery it struck a tree and fell into the forest below. Very limited time on type sat behind the loss of control at low altitude on approach, with no other contributing factors identified by the investigation.

1. Approach to Gruyères ~18:00 LT: The pilot is on approach to Gruyères Aérodrome (LSGT) at about 18:00 LT on 2 August 2015 in a Grunau Baby II.
2. 40 min on type, 698 h total: The pilot holds a glider licence with 698 hours total experience but only 40 minutes on the Grunau Baby II — all of his time on type was flown in the prior 90 days.
3. Spin at ~1000 m AMSL on approach: At an altitude of about 1000 m AMSL — roughly 270 m above the airfield — the glider departs controlled flight and enters a spin during the approach.
4. Recovery attempt: The pilot initiates recovery from the spin.
5. Tree strike during recovery: During the recovery the glider strikes a tree low above a forest below the approach path.
6. Falls into forest, light injury: After the tree strike the glider falls into the forest and is seriously damaged. The pilot suffers light injuries.