What happened
On October 3, 2009, a Zodiac CH 601 D ultralight aircraft departed from the Neuhausen ob Eck airfield for a series of circuit training flights. The aircraft was occupied by a flight instructor and a student pilot. After an initial period of flight, the training session was briefly interrupted before a second takeoff from runway 27 occurred at 16:03 local time.
Shortly after this departure, at 16:04, the aircraft entered a right-hand turn at an altitude of approximately 20 to 30 meters. During this maneuver, witnesses observed the aircraft exhibiting a bank angle of 20-30° and a longitudinal pitch of 10-15°. As the aircraft approached a hangar located at the western end of the airfield, the bank angle increased sharply to approximately 80°. The aircraft then collided with the hangar wall, 160 meters north of the runway.
Upon impact, the nose wheel struck the hangar wall at a height of 3.40 meters. The fuselage struck a steel roof beam and subsequently a lift mechanism. The impact was severe enough to separate the tail section and the remainder of the wing surfaces from the fuselage. The aircraft caught fire immediately following the collision, and the resulting blaze spread within the hangar, destroying two additional aircraft and damaging four others.
The investigation
The BFU investigation examined the wreckage, the flight path, and witness testimonies. To reconstruct the flight trajectory, investigators utilized Virtual Reality (VR) technology and the IWI® methodology to analyze eyewitness accounts. The investigation confirmed that the aircraft's engine, instrument panel, and fuel tank were torn from the airframe during the collision. The investigation also reviewed the pilot's credentials, noting the instructor held a valid private pilot license and flight instructor rating, and the student was undergoing training for an ultralight pilot certificate.
Findings
- The collision resulted in two fatalities.
- The aircraft was in a high-angle bank of approximately 80° at the moment of impact.
- The impact with the hangar structure caused the immediate destruction of the aircraft and the subsequent fire.