What happened
On March 31, 2002, at approximately 17:40 local time, a Rolladen Schneider LS8-18 glider, registration D-1003, crashed in a forested mountain area at Al Piazzo, in the municipality of Spriana (SO). The aircraft, operated by Aero Club Sindelfingen, was participating in a towed flight operation originating from the Caiolo airfield.
The flight sequence began with a tow towards Lake Como to utilize westerly winds, followed by a turn toward the north and then east toward Sondrio. After reaching an altitude of approximately 4,000 feet, the glider pilot successfully released from the tow cable and signaled "cable free" to the tow plane. The tow pilot observed the glider beginning a regular turn. However, the glider failed to return to the airfield, and no radio communications were received from the aircraft after the release. Following an alarm raised by the aero club, the wreckage was discovered the following morning at an altitude of approximately 1,400 meters. The aircraft was found overturned and heavily damaged, with the pilot deceased.
The investigation
The ANSV investigation focused on the flight path and the condition of the wreckage. Investigators noted that the surrounding vegetation showed no significant signs of impact damage, and the overturned position of the aircraft suggested a nearly vertical descent trajectory. The investigation examined the pilot's recent flight history, noting that while the pilot held valid glider and motor glider licenses, his recent experience had been almost exclusively in motor gliders, and he had not performed dual-instruction flights in the recent period.
Technical inspections of the Rolladen Schneider LS8-18 found no evidence of mechanical failure or issues regarding airworthiness. Furthermore, there was no evidence to suggest that a medical emergency involving the pilot contributed to the accident.
Findings
- The primary cause of the accident was loss of control due to a stall during a turn and a subsequent entry into a spin.
- A contributing factor was the pilot's limited experience flying gliders specifically within the local terrain, as his recent flight experience was primarily focused on motor gliders.