Summary
On 4 February 2021, at approximately 15:20 local time, a Class II sports/recreational aircraft, an Apollo 15D/Jet Star C motorized hang glider (registration 9A-UCP), crashed into the accumulation lake near Novo Selo na Dravi, Croatia. The aircraft was destroyed; the pilot and passenger sustained fatal injuries.
Aircraft and Crew Information
The aircraft was an Apollo 15D/Jet Star C, serial number 060709/69718, manufactured by Apollo Ultralight Aircraft, Hungary. It was a two-seat motorized hang glider with an open cockpit in tandem configuration, fixed tricycle landing gear, and powered by a Rotax 912 engine driving a three-blade composite propeller. Its empty mass was 180 kg, maximum takeoff weight 430 kg, maximum fuel capacity 45 L, cruising speed 110 km/h, maximum speed 125 km/h, stall speed 55 km/h, and climb rate 4 m/s. The aircraft was registered in the Croatian civil aircraft register. The last recorded flight prior to the accident was on 29 August 2020, with 354 hours and 692 cycles logged.
The pilot was a male Croatian citizen born in 1986, holding a Class II sports/recreational pilot license issued in 2015, with approximately 130 total flight hours. The passenger was a male Croatian citizen born in 1979.
Accident Sequence
The aircraft departed from Prelog aerodrome around 15:15 LT for a recreational flight. The pilot and passenger had arranged to overfly a group of acquaintances gathered at a clearing near the northern shore of the western accumulation lake on the Drava River. The aircraft approached from the east, made a right turn over the clearing, and then continued toward the lake. Between the clearing and the lake, an embankment approximately 8 m high obstructed the view of the lake from the clearing. The witnesses on the ground visually tracked the aircraft until it disappeared behind the embankment; shortly after, they heard a crash and the engine sound ceased.
Wreckage
The accident site was on the reservoir lake. The aircraft impacted the water and sank. Upon recovery, the aircraft showed significant damage: the left wing tube was broken about 1 m from the wingtip, the fuselage was fractured with the forward section bent to the right, the left wheel fairing was heavily damaged, while the right wheel fairing and right wing were nearly undamaged. Substantial damage was also observed on steel cables, frame structure, and wing fabric.
Meteorological Conditions
Meteorological conditions were not a factor in the accident.
Probable Cause
The investigation determined that the probable cause was loss of control due to collision with the water surface of the accumulation lake.