Standard Austria S crash following winch launch failure at Swiss military airfield
On August 23, 1964, a Standard Austria S experienced a winch launch failure at a military airfield in Switzerland. During the launch, the winch cable broke at an altitude of 50-80 meters. The pilot attempted a low-altitude turn back to the start point, leading to a stall and spin. The glider crashed, resulting in the pilot's fatality and the destruction of the aircraft. The investigation noted the cable had multiple weak repair points, contributing to the failure.
- Winch launch climb: The Standard Austria HB-718 began a normal winch launch from the military airfield, climbing away from the start point.
- Winch cable break: At an altitude of about 50–80 meters, the winch cable suddenly broke, interrupting the launch.
- Initial recovery actions: The pilot immediately released the remaining cable and initially established the glider in a normal glide attitude.
- Low-altitude turn back: Shortly after the cable break, the pilot initiated a relatively tight left turn, apparently to return toward the launch area despite the low height.
- Stall and spin entry: During the tight left turn at low altitude, the airspeed dropped below stall speed, causing the glider to drop over the left wing and enter a spin.
- Unrecoverable low spin: The glider completed about two turns in a steep spin, with insufficient height available for recovery.
- Crash - fatal: The glider impacted steeply into the grass beside the paved runway about 300 meters from the start point, fatally injuring the pilot and destroying the aircraft.