What happened
On 6 September 2007, a CENTRAIR 101 PEGASE A glider, registration F-CHLH, crashed in the Hecho municipality of Huesca, Spain. The flight departed from the Santa Cilia aerodrome at 15:30 for a local flight. The pilot, a highly experienced glider pilot, was the sole occupant of the aircraft.
While flying over the Foratón River valley, the aircraft was positioned near the southwest slope of Peak Bisaurín. At approximately 17:00, the aircraft impacted the ground at an elevation of 2,016 meters. The impact was characterized by a nose-down attitude with almost no horizontal speed. The aircraft's cockpit and front fuselage were destroyed upon impact, and the pilot sustained fatal injuries.
The investigation
The CIAIAC investigation examined the wreckage, meteorological data, and the pilot's flight history. Investigators analyzed the debris field, which was notably compact, and found no evidence of mechanical failure or flight control malfunction. The aircraft's maintenance records were in order, and all required documentation was valid.
To reconstruct the local weather conditions, investigators used data from a separate glider that had flown through the same area at the time of the accident. This allowed the commission to determine that while winds were generally weak, there was a discrepancy in wind direction between higher and lower elevations: winds were primarily from the north at higher altitudes and from the west at lower altitudes. The investigation also reviewed the pilot's training and experience, noting that he had recently completed mountain flying training in the area and possessed significant total flight time.
Findings
- The pilot was sufficiently trained and experienced for mountain flight operations.
- The aircraft was in a proper state of airworthiness with no mechanical defects found.
- At the time of the accident, the aircraft was flying on the leeward side of Peak Bisaurín.
- The aircraft struck the ground in a pitch-down attitude.
- A sudden downdraft pushed the glider into the terrain while it was flying at a low altitude near the steep hillside.