Discus B y ASW 27 colisionan en grupo de competición
En una colisión en vuelo en un grupo térmico de competición, el piloto de un Schempp-Hirth Discus B falleció y el del Schleicher ASW 27 con heridas leves; Discus destruido, ASW 27 con daños sustanciales. ~10-15 planeadores giraban a la izquierda a ~1 000 m AGL. El Discus cruzó el centro y viró a la izquierda al círculo del ASW 27 con desfase ~150°. El ala izquierda golpeó la cabina del ASW 27; la parte externa se plegó y se separó, y el Discus entró en actitud espiral e impactó casi vertical. El abandono fracasó pese a la altitud suficiente: fuerzas rotacionales y la ausencia del pomo de eyección pudieron impedirlo — cronología incierta.
- Competition thermaling: During the Bavaria Glide 1998 competition, the Discus b was circling in a thermal among a gaggle of about 10–15 gliders, all flying left-hand circles in an updraft.
- Dense gaggle traffic: The Discus b and ASW-27 were part of the upper third of a dense thermal gaggle, with multiple gliders circling on similar tracks at about 1,000 m above ground.
- Discus enters ASW-27 path: The Discus b flew through the center of the ASW-27’s circling pattern and then turned left into the same circle, with its path offset by about 150° relative to the ASW-27.
- Mid-air wing collision: The left wing of the Discus b struck the cockpit/forward fuselage area of the ASW-27, causing immediate structural damage to the Discus b’s left outer wing.
- Wing failure and spiral: Immediately after the contact, the left outer wing of the Discus b folded upward, separated from the aircraft, and the glider entered a spiral-dive-like uncontrolled attitude.
- No successful bailout: Although altitude would have allowed a bailout in principle, the pilot did not escape the aircraft, possibly impeded by high rotational forces and a hard-to-find canopy release.
- Crash - fatal: The Discus b struck a grassy hillside nearly vertically, destroying the glider and fatally injuring the pilot; the ASW-27 landed safely, its pilot only lightly injured.