Accidente del SZD-9 bis 1D cerca de Saint-Jean-en-Royans con un fallecido
El 2 de julio de 1962, un planeador SZD SZD-9 bis 1D se estrelló cerca de Saint-Jean-en-Royans, Francia, durante un vuelo de entrenamiento local. El incidente ocurrió cuando la aeronave entró en pérdida y descendió verticalmente en una zona boscosa. El planeador fue completamente destruido al impactar. El piloto, de nacionalidad estadounidense, sufrió heridas mortales, mientras que el copiloto, de nacionalidad suiza, sobrevivió con heridas leves. El accidente se atribuyó a una presunta pérdida de velocidad y la posterior entrada en pérdida, según informó el copiloto sobreviviente.
- Aerotow local flight: The Bocian HB-646 departed Saint-Jean-en-Royans on an aerotow for a local training/soaring flight along the nearby mountain slope with two pilots on board.
- Low ridge-soaring height: After release at about 550 m above the airfield, the glider continued ridge soaring near the mountain crest at an estimated 200 m from the summit, leaving limited height margin above the terrain.
- Slow spiral initiated: While flying near the crest, the crew entered a spiral turn at too low an airspeed, as later reported by the surviving pilot.
- Slow speed not corrected: The Swiss pilot noted and reportedly mentioned the excessively low speed to his companion, but the airspeed was not increased sufficiently to maintain safe margin above stall.
- Stall in downwind: With the glider in a downwind attitude and at too low an airspeed, it stalled and departed controlled flight, pitching into a near-vertical descent toward the forest.
- Crash - fatal: The glider plunged vertically through 15 m trees into the forest near the Col de Gaudissard, was completely destroyed, the rear-seat U.S. pilot was fatally injured, and the front-seat Swiss pilot sustained only minor injuries.