Club Libelle 205 accident during winch launch at Samedan resulting in fatality
On August 12, 1997, a Glasflügel Club Libelle 205 Mod experienced a fatal accident during a winch launch at Samedan Airport, Switzerland. The pilot, a Swiss national with significant flight experience, attempted a winch launch in variable wind conditions. During the transition to climb, the aircraft stalled and rolled over, impacting the ground in an inverted position. The glider was destroyed upon impact, and the pilot sustained fatal injuries. The investigation confirmed that the accident resulted from a loss of control following a stall during the winch launch.
- Winch launch takeoff: During a winch launch from grass runway 21 at Samedan, the glider lifted off and initially climbed away in a relatively flat attitude.
- Variable light wind: Launch took place in variable wind conditions up to about 5 kt, which were not optimal for winch launching regarding wind direction and air density.
- Limited winch experience: The pilot had relatively low recent winch-launch experience on this specific glider type, and had previously been cautioned about transitioning to climb with too low a speed.
- Transition to steep climb: As the glider, already climbing shallowly with evidently insufficient speed, entered the transition to the steeper winch climb, the pilot pitched it up as for a normal winch launch.
- Stall and roll-off: At about 50 m above ground, the airflow stalled during the transition to climb, the glider became unstable, rolled left, and went out of control.
- Inverted ground impact: The glider tipped over the left wing and impacted the hard-surface runway inverted, nose first, and was destroyed.
- Crash - fatal: The crash during the winch launch fatally injured the pilot.