Fatal Glider Towing Accident Involving Cessna 182A at Orient Aerodrome (ZS-CGN)

Accident Overview and Context On 16 February 2014, at 1015Z, a Cessna 182A with registration ZS-CGN, operated by Magalies Gliding Club, crashed at Orient Aerodrome (FAOI) in Gauteng Province, South Africa. The aircraft was destroyed in a fuel-fed post-impact fire, resulting in the death of the sole occupant, the 62-year-old pilot-in-command. The glider being towed, a Ventus CM (ZS-GXR), landed safely on runway 18. ## Flight History and Sequence of Events The pilot, who was rostered for glider towing duties, completed a pre-flight inspection and taxied to the threshold of runway 36. The tow rope was connected to the glider, and the launch commenced on the signal of a wing runner. Witnesses reported that the glider became airborne before the tug and climbed to a high tow position. The combination then encountered turbulence, after which the glider climbed significantly higher than the tug. The glider pilot deployed air brakes, but the glider continued to climb. The tug aircraft subsequently pitched nose-down and collided with the ground in a nose-down attitude on the extended centreline of runway 36. ## Personnel and Aircraft Information The pilot-in-command held a valid airline transport pilot licence with a tug pilot rating. His total flying experience was 7,518.2 hours, with 23.0 hours on the Cessna 182 type. The glider pilot, a 42-year-old Dutch national, held a valid glider pilot licence and successfully landed the glider after releasing the tow rope. The Cessna 182A was a four-seat, single-engine light aircraft. ## Probable Cause The accident was determined to have occurred as a result of a vertical tow upset, which caused the tow pilot to momentarily lose control of the aircraft at low altitude. The pilot was unable to recover the aircraft before it impacted the ground.