2010 Le Mans Arnage glider tow cable accident (F-GDYK)

Overview and immediate circumstances On 1 July 2010 at 18:25 local time, a Robin DR400 registered F-GDYK, operated by a club, was involved in an accident at Le Mans Arnage aerodrome (72). The incident occurred after the final glider tow of the day, when the pilot was on approach to land on runway 20, an unpaved runway. The pilot requested and received permission from the tower controller to make a long landing in order to stow the tow cable quickly and reduce disruption to aerodrome traffic. Another aircraft in the circuit intended to land behind the F-GDYK on the same runway. ## Runway and operational context Le Mans Arnage has two parallel runways: a grass runway and a paved runway located to the west. The unpaved runway was 970 m long and 80 m wide. Only the western half of runway 20 had been mown, which made it difficult to identify the eastern edge precisely. The presence of people near the runway edges was described as a common practice for glider operations, enabling glider launches. ## Sequence of events During the final approach, the pilot aligned the aircraft on the eastern side of the runway and parallel to its axis. The pilot then judged that the landing path was too close to pilots and students on the eastern edge of the unpaved runway. At an estimated height of about 20 m, the pilot applied full power and turned slightly to the right. This maneuver caused the tow cable to swing sharply downward and to the left. People near the runway edge fell to the ground, but the end of the cable struck one person in the face. The pilot completed the landing on runway 20 after the maneuver. ## Pilot experience The pilot held PPL(A) and VV licenses and had 449 hours of airplane flight time since 1991, including 10 hours in the previous three months. The pilot had held a glider-towing qualification since May 2002 and had completed approximately 1,710 tows, including 12 on the day of the accident. ## Findings and outcome The investigation concluded that the decision to land too close to the runway edge led to the tow cable striking a person on the ground. The decision was driven by the desire to optimize cable stowage and avoid disrupting air traffic, but without prior assessment of the associated risks. The difference in grass height on the unpaved runway may have delayed recognition that the approach path was too close to the runway edge. Since summer 2011, the club stopped towing operations, and glider launches are now made using a winch.