Grunau Baby incident at Birrfeld airfield: collision with earth bank during landing
On April 11, 1967, an Edmund Schneider Grunau Baby II experienced a landing incident at Birrfeld Airfield, Switzerland. The pilot attempted to land after a short flight but misjudged the altitude. The left wing of the glider struck a 2.5-meter-high earth bank, causing the aircraft to rotate 180 degrees and sustain significant damage upon ground contact. The pilot suffered a lumbar vertebra compression injury. The investigation highlighted the pilot's inexperience and difficulty in estimating altitude as contributing factors.
- Aerotow local flight: The pilot aerotowed from Birrfeld to the Holderbank/Schinznach-Bad area for a local soaring flight of about 10 minutes.
- Altimeter malfunction: Shortly after takeoff the pilot noticed the altimeter was not indicating correctly, forcing him to estimate his altitude for the remainder of the flight.
- Low experience and recency: The pilot had only about 21 hours total gliding experience, roughly 3 hours since his license, and had not flown for more than three months prior to this flight.
- Misjudged height for circuit: On returning to Birrfeld, the pilot incorrectly assessed that his height was sufficient to fly a half circuit and integrate into the landing pattern for runway 26 instead of planning an immediate outlanding.
- Flies low base-to-final: He flew the downwind leg along the 600 m runway and then, about 100 m east of it, initiated a 180° left turn toward final approach at an insufficient height above ground.
- Left wing strikes earth bank: During the low-altitude left turn, the glider’s left wingtip struck a 2.5 m high earth bank located along the extension of the southern runway boundary, causing the aircraft to yaw almost 180° and touch down in a strong sideslip.
- Crash - minor injury: The glider landed hard outside the airfield boundary, sustaining substantial damage, and the pilot suffered a lumbar vertebral compression injury.