Incident Overview
On July 23, 2008, a two-seat Schleicher ASK 13 glider was involved in an accident at Butzbach, Germany. The aircraft, which had been in service since 1967 with a total of 2,767 flight hours, was destroyed in the crash. One person sustained serious injuries while another suffered minor injuries. No third-party damage was reported.
Flight Details and Sequence of Events
The glider took off at approximately 14:40 local time using a winch launch for a training flight with two occupants on board. The initial circuit flight proceeded without incident. During the landing configuration phase, the instructor radioed an intention to land on runway 29. Witnesses observed the aircraft approaching unusually low and slow over the tree line adjacent to the airfield.
As the glider continued its final approach, it banked to the right. The right wing made contact with the trees, causing the aircraft to lose control. It fell into the forest with a significant longitudinal tilt and impacted the ground almost vertically. The force of the impact crushed the cockpit area and snapped the fuselage ahead of the tail assembly. Both wings fractured multiple times, with debris scattered within a 20-meter radius of the wreckage.
Investigation Findings
The German Federal Aviation Office (BFU) investigated the incident under the Civil Aircraft Accident Investigation Act. Meteorological conditions at the time were favorable for visual flight rules, with light cloud cover, winds from 30-90 degrees at 4 knots, and a ground temperature of 23°C.
Technical inspections revealed no mechanical defects in the aircraft. The load distribution and center of gravity were within permissible limits. The investigation concluded that the accident resulted from an incorrect assessment of available altitude during the landing configuration. The glider approached too low over the wooded area, leading to a loss of required airspeed. This caused the aircraft to stall and bank right, resulting in wing contact with trees before the high-energy vertical impact.