Colisión de un ASW 24 con el terreno cerca de Piz Mezzaun, Suiza, resultando en una fatalidad
El 25 de agosto de 1998, un Alexander Schleicher ASW 24 colisionó con el terreno cerca de Piz Mezzaun en La Punt-Chamues, Suiza. El incidente ocurrió durante un vuelo privado mientras el piloto realizaba un vuelo de ladera. El planeador fue destruido en el impacto, y el único ocupante, un piloto suizo experimentado, resultó fatalmente herido. Las condiciones meteorológicas incluían viento ligero y buena visibilidad, pero la posible cizalladura del viento o convergencia podría haber contribuido al accidente. El transmisor localizador de emergencia no se activó en el impacto.
- Winch launch ridge flight: The pilot departed Samedan on his third winch launch of the day for a local ridge-soaring flight after conditions had improved.
- Alpine ridge soaring: The pilot proceeded east of the airfield, likely following the Inn valley toward La Punt-Chamues-ch to use the sunlit south-southeast facing ridge of Piz Mezzaun for lift.
- Complex wind interaction: At ridge height, local upslope winds on the sunlit face likely interacted with a prevailing northwesterly flow, creating possible windshear or convergence and rapidly changing lift and sink near the terrain.
- Wing contacts terrain: While ridge soaring close to the slope, the glider’s left wingtip likely touched the terrain, as indicated by impact marks on the left wing.
- Loss of control: Following the wingtip strike, the pilot lost control of the glider, which entered a nose-down attitude with a right rotation toward the mountainside.
- Crash - fatal: The glider impacted the south-southwest slope of Piz Mezzaun nose-first in a right turn, was destroyed, and the pilot sustained fatal injuries.