Background
On Monday, 7 May 1962, at 09:00 MEZ, a Piper PA-18 Super Cub (registration HB-ORC) departed Bern Airport for a commercial flight to the glacier landing site at Jungfraujoch. The aircraft was operated by Alpar Flug- und Flugplatzgesellschaft A.G. and was crewed by a pilot and one passenger. The pilot held a limited professional pilot license and had accumulated approximately 500 flight hours, including 54 hours on the accident type (with 554 glacier landings). He had never landed at Jungfraujoch before. The passenger, a 21-year-old German woman, had no flight training.
A second Piper PA-18 (HB-ORK) flew in company to perform the same transport task. Both aircraft took off together and flew to the Jungfrau region in fine weather. At about 09:25, they crossed the Sphinx ridge, where the sky became overcast and the air turbulent.
Accident Sequence
The pilot of HB-ORK landed normally without a reconnaissance circuit. The pilot of HB-ORC circled the landing area twice, as he could not clearly discern the terrain. He observed the first aircraft's landing and used its ski tracks as a reference. He then initiated an approach, as instructed, somewhat fast and low, without cross-checking the altimeter. He descended lower than intended, and the rising terrain obscured the tracks. In the diffuse lighting, he could no longer judge the distance to the glacier surface. Unable to abort (a common limitation in glacier approaches), he continued the approach. At the transition from the approach slope to the landing area, the landing gear contacted the snow earlier than planned. The aircraft, slightly nose-high but with significant speed, bounced and veered left. A gust of wind then lifted the right wing. About 110 meters further and 10 meters left, the left ski and left wing tip struck the snow a second time, and the aircraft overturned.
Damage
Neither the pilot nor the passenger sustained injuries. The aircraft (HB-ORC) was seriously damaged. No third-party damage occurred.
Probable Cause
The investigation concluded that the accident was caused by the pilot misjudging the approach and coming too low, resulting in premature ground contact in gusty wind conditions.