Collision du Ventus C avec le terrain près de St. Stephan entraînant un décès

Le 30 juillet 2000, un planeur Schempp-Hirth Ventus C est entré en collision avec le terrain près de St. Stephan, en Suisse. Le pilote, un ressortissant suisse né en 1951, effectuait un vol privé lors d'un camp de vol à voile alpin. Des témoins ont observé le planeur entrer dans une descente abrupte avant de s'écraser verticalement au sol. Le pilote a été mortellement blessé dans l'accident. L'enquête n'a révélé aucune défaillance technique de l'appareil, et l'incident était probablement dû à des raisons médicales, bien que cela n'ait pas pu être confirmé avec certitude.

1. Cruise thermaling flight: After an aerotow departure from Zweisimmen at 13:45, the pilot was cruising and circling in lift near the Wistätthorn with other gliders during an alpine soaring camp.
2. Onset of steep descent: While flying a wide, normal-looking turn east of the Wistätthorn ridge, the glider suddenly began to lower its nose rapidly during the next 90 degrees of turn for no apparent operational or technical reason.
3. Possible medical incapacitation: The pilot had significant coronary artery narrowing that could have led to reduced heart muscle oxygenation and possible loss of consciousness, and no technical or handling issues were found to explain the maneuver.
4. No visible recovery action: Throughout the ensuing 270-degree turn with an increasingly nose-down attitude, witnesses observed no apparent corrective control inputs or pull-out from the dive by the pilot.
5. Vertical high-speed dive: The glider transitioned into a near-vertical attitude and continued straight down for approximately the last 100 meters at an estimated much higher speed, with airbrakes partially extended at impact.
6. Crash - fatal: The glider impacted the terrain almost vertically and buried its nose in the ground, destroying the aircraft and fatally injuring the pilot.