Mucha Standard collision with obstacle during landing at Amlikon airfield

On August 26, 1972, a Mucha Standard glider was involved in an incident at Amlikon airfield in Switzerland. During the landing approach, the pilot found the glider too low to execute a planned long landing. Attempting to adjust the approach, the glider collided with willow bushes near the Thur river, causing it to crash into the riverbed. The pilot was unharmed, but the glider sustained significant damage. The investigation concluded that the collision resulted from the pilot's inattention to obstacles during the landing approach.

1. Circuit and approach: After a winch launch and cable release at about 400 m AGL, the pilot flew the landing circuit and turned onto final for runway 07 at Amlikon.
2. Too-low final approach: On final approach the pilot realized he was too low to execute the previously agreed long landing needed to leave space for the following Ka-6.
3. Traffic and obstacle constraints: The right half of the runway threshold area was partially occupied by two gliders and a winch cable retrieval vehicle, and the pilot was also trying to keep the left half free for the Ka-6.
4. Offset landing attempt: To keep the left side free and avoid the parked aircraft and vehicle, the pilot decided to land diagonally into the right half of the runway behind the retrieval vehicle.
5. Left deviation for alignment: To achieve the desired diagonal landing direction, the pilot maneuvered left of the approach path while concentrating on the aircraft and vehicle on the field and did not adequately monitor obstacles beside the approach.
6. Wing strikes bushes: About 65 m before the runway markings and roughly 50 m left of the approach axis, the left wingtip struck approximately 4 m high willow bushes on the bank of the Thur river.
7. Crash - no injury: The glider was violently yawed left and crashed into the riverbed, heavily damaging the aircraft but leaving the pilot uninjured.