Accidente de Mosquito en terreno montañoso cerca de Gruyères resulta en la muerte del piloto

El 18 de mayo de 1992, un Glasflügel Mosquito se estrelló contra una ladera boscosa cerca de Gruyères, Francia. El piloto realizaba su primer vuelo de entrenamiento de la temporada durante un campamento de vuelo a vela. Aproximadamente dos horas después del despegue, el planeador entró en pérdida y se estrelló a una altitud de 1470 metros, 2,5 km al sureste del aeródromo. El piloto murió instantáneamente y la aeronave fue destruida. En el informe oficial se señalaron fuertes turbulencias locales y un posible malestar del piloto como factores contribuyentes.

1. Aerotow local flight: The pilot departed Gruyères at 14:21 on an aerotow for his first local training flight of the season in his Mosquito glider.
2. Mountain turbulence area: The flight took place in a steep, complex pre‑Alpine valley with strong bise-induced turbulence and significant vertical air accelerations reported by other pilots and the rescue helicopter.
3. Low height near ridge: Shortly before the accident the glider was flying near ridge height around 1600 m MSL, leaving only about 100 m above the treetops, insufficient margin to recover from a stall.
4. Sudden stall event: In the turbulent valley flow, the glider most likely entered an uncommanded stall, probably induced by a vertical gust and possibly compounded by pilot malaise.
5. Unrecovered nose drop: With inadequate height to complete a recovery, the stalled glider transitioned into a near-vertical descent without returning to normal flight.
6. Crash - fatal: Around 16:20 the glider impacted a steep, wooded west slope of the Dent du Chamois in a near-vertical attitude, destroying the aircraft and killing the pilot instantly.