What happened
On 22 February 2009, a private flight departing from a farm near Geluk Private Game Lodge ended in a fatal accident. The pilot took off in an easterly direction in a Pipistrel Taurus glider, registration ZU-GAM. Witnesses observed the aircraft climbing and performing an anti-clockwise spiral turn.
As the aircraft reached a significant altitude, the sound of the engine being switched off was heard, a standard procedure for powered gliding. Shortly after the engine shutdown, the aircraft began to exhibit unstable motion, including side-to-side rocking and fore-aft pitching. The aircraft then entered a series of nose-over tumbles. During this sequence, the glider struck a tree, causing the right wing to be severed, before crashing into the ground in a nose-down attitude. The impact destroyed the aircraft and resulted in one fatality.
The investigation
SACAA AIID investigators examined the wreckage and interviewed witnesses to reconstruct the flight path. The investigation confirmed that the engine was functioning normally and that the engine shutdown was a deliberate act by the pilot. While the engine pylon actuator was found to be bent and the engine was not fully retracted at the moment of impact, the engine's operational capability was not considered a cause of the accident.
Technical analysis of the wreckage indicated that the aircraft was in a clockwise spin at the moment of impact with the tree. The investigation also noted that the pilot had recently completed a three-hour refresher training session on this specific aircraft type just one day prior to the accident. The aircraft itself was nearly new, having been delivered to the owner only two days before the flight.
Findings
- The pilot failed to maintain flying speed, which led to a loss of control and an aerodynamic stall.
- The pilot's limited experience with this specific glider type may have hindered the ability to recover from the initial rocking motion.
- The aircraft was in a state of unstable, tumbling flight following the engine shutdown sequence.