Slovak glider accident at Klížské Hradište (OM-9603)

Incident Overview and Flight Details On 2 July 2023, a private Orličan VSO-10 glider, registration OM-9603, departed from LZPT (Partizánske) at 12:54:27 UTC for a competition flight in the club class of the “Memoriál Alexandra Makarenka 2023” gliding event. The planned route was LZPT–Tužina–Semerovo–Žirany–LZPT, with a total distance of 206.99 km. ## Flight Progression and Decision to Land The pilot in command (PIC) did not reach the first turnpoint at Tužina and continued toward Semerovo. Near Iňa, at 15:21:50 UTC and 1,062 m AGL, the PIC ended the competition task due to worsening weather conditions in the Nitra area and began returning to LZPT. The glider later flew over a valley between the Pohronský Inovec and Štiavnické vrchy mountain ranges at 593 m AGL at 15:48:00 UTC. As the flight continued, altitude decreased significantly: 334 m AGL at Veľká Lehota at 15:56 UTC, 218 m AGL near Skýcov at 16:15:00 UTC, and 123 m AGL near Podkonice at 16:18:00 UTC. Due to insufficient altitude over mountainous terrain, the PIC decided to make a forced landing in a mown meadow behind the village of Klížské Hradište. ## Landing and Damage Before landing, the PIC inspected the site. However, due to strong downdrafts, the planned maneuver to align the glider into the wind could not be completed, and the glider landed downwind toward sloping terrain. During landing, with the wheel braked and full aerodynamic brakes deployed, the glider bounced twice, causing extensive damage. The glider sustained damage to the front laminated fuselage section, cracked cabin floor, damaged cabin cover, deformed tail tube, broken horizontal stabilizer, and damaged aerodynamic brakes. The PIC was not injured. ## Aircraft and Pilot Information The Orličan VSO-10 is a single-seat, cantilever, high-wing glider of mixed construction. It had a maximum takeoff weight of 380 kg, which was not exceeded. The aircraft had 1,256 hours 07 minutes total time since new and 1,080 total landings since new. The last maintenance was a 100-hour/annual inspection on 29 June 2023. The PIC was a 41-year-old Slovak citizen holding a sailplane pilot licence (SPL), a motorized sailplane rating (TMG), and a glider flying instructor qualification (FI(S)). The pilot had 515 hours 14 minutes total experience, including 213 hours 52 minutes on type.