Accident Overview
On May 3, 2020, a Grob G103 Twin Astir Twin II glider, registration SP-3934, was involved in an accident at the Laszki airfield (EPJL) during basic glider training. The flight was a winch-launched training session with an instructor and a student pilot.
Sequence of Events
The training session included several flights with the student practicing exercise SPL/I 4 (special and emergency procedures). During the fourth flight, after the winch cable release at approximately 140 meters altitude, the student correctly released the cable and turned the glider left away from the airfield axis. The student continued straight, intending to land downwind. About 400 meters west of the airfield boundary, at an altitude of around 80 meters, the student initiated a right turn back toward the field. Due to the low altitude, the instructor took over controls and continued toward the airfield. Just before the field, the glider entered a patch of drizzle with increased sink rate. With no safe terrain for landing before the field, the instructor pressed on. While crossing the fence at minimum speed, the left wing struck a concrete fence post, and the right wing snagged bushes along a ditch and fence, causing the glider to yaw right. The glider then made a hard landing with a sideways drift on the field, short of the runway.
Damage
The collision tore off the left wingtip at the aileron. The hard landing with sideways drift broke the landing gear and twisted off the tailboom.
Injuries
The crew sustained no injuries.
Probable Causes
The accident was caused by: (1) the instructor's delayed reaction to the student pilot's error (moving away from the airfield) during the landing maneuver; (2) the instructor's lack of decision to land in an emergency field (the meadow before the airfield) at the time of turning toward the airport.
Contributing Factor
A contributing factor was the drizzle, which increased the glider's sink rate and reduced visibility from the cockpit.