Incident Overview
On 8 July 2023, a student pilot conducted a training flight in a SZD-51-1 Junior glider (registration SP-3506) from the Aeroklub Lubelski airport in Radawiec (EPLR). At 16:30 LMT, the glider was launched for a cross-country training flight. After reaching an altitude of 1,100 m, the pilot flew toward Nałęczów and then toward Bełżyce. During this segment, thermal lift ranged from 1 to 3 m/s.
Flight Details
After reaching Bełżyce, the pilot turned east toward the airport. The glider entered an area of sinking air with a descent rate of 3–4 m/s and began losing altitude rapidly. The student pilot attempted to find thermals but was unsuccessful. With insufficient height to return to the airport, the pilot selected a field for an off-airport landing. The field was assessed for size and crop type. The landing was performed on a barley field with a crop height of approximately 85 cm.
Landing and Damage
During the landing roll, the right wing struck the tall barley, causing the glider to yaw sharply to the right (a ground loop). The left wing tip then contacted the ground, and the glider came to a stop. The pilot sustained no injuries, but the glider was seriously damaged. The landing occurred in the village of Podole, about 7.5 km southwest of the Radawiec airport.
Pilot Experience
At the time of the incident, the student pilot had a total flying time of 63 hours and 45 minutes. This was the pilot's third off-airport landing. The investigation by the Polish State Commission on Aircraft Accident Investigation (PKBWL) identified the cause as landing in high crop and the resulting wing strike leading to a ground loop. No contributing factors were found. The aeroclub subsequently discussed the event at a pre-flight briefing and prohibited glider cross-country flights until 25 July 2023 due to high crops.