Incident DG-600 à Sool, Suisse, entraînant un décès
Le 10 septembre 2000, un planeur Glaser-Dirks Flugzeugbau DG-600 s'est écrasé près de Sool, en Suisse. Le pilote, qui était le seul occupant, a été éjecté du cockpit lors de l'impact et a subi des blessures mortelles. L'incident s'est produit après que le planeur ait été observé effectuant des manœuvres inhabituelles à grande vitesse. Une enquête a révélé qu'il n'y avait pas de problèmes techniques préexistants avec l'appareil. Cependant, des résultats médicaux ont suggéré que le pilote souffrait de graves problèmes cardiaques qui ont probablement contribué à une perte de contrôle.
- Aerotow departure: The pilot assembled and checked his private DG-600 with his wife’s assistance at Schänis and took off by aerotow at 13:02 without abnormalities.
- Post-tow cruising: After releasing from tow over the Schilt group, the pilot thanked the tug pilot and continued gliding in the local area under good weather conditions.
- Pilot incapacitation: While cruising, the pilot likely suffered a consciousness disturbance related to severe pre-existing heart disease, initiating a loss of effective control of the glider.
- Unusual high-speed flight: Another glider pilot and ground witnesses observed the DG-600 flying straight at very high speed toward Gulderstock–Schwanden, then abruptly entering unusual attitudes including a steep left bank of 60–90 degrees.
- Descent into terrain: The glider entered a descending flight path with about a 45-degree nose-down attitude, sheared the tops off small trees, and continued toward rising terrain.
- Crash - fatal: The glider impacted the slope near Alp Fessis/Kuhboden and was destroyed; the pilot was thrown from the cockpit, his parachute partially deployed from its pack, and he sustained fatal injuries.