What happened
On August 3, 1961, at approximately 14:20 CEST, a student pilot participating in a training session with an Austrian Aero-Club launched a flight from the grass runway 28 at Altenrhein Airport. The pilot had already completed two prior flights that day, during which the instructor noted a tendency to fly at low speeds.
During the approach for landing, the pilot executed a left turn at an altitude of approximately 300 meters. As the aircraft transitioned to a final approach at about 80 meters, it drifted too far to the right of the runway centerline. In an attempt to correct the position and initiate a left glide, the pilot applied right rudder and then left aileron. During this maneuver, the aircraft's speed dropped below the minimum required threshold. At an altitude of roughly 40 meters, the Grunau Baby III tipped over its right wing, entered a right-hand spin, and struck the ground approximately 500 meters before the runway threshold after roughly one and a half rotations. The impact resulted in serious injuries to the pilot and heavy damage to the OE-0231.
The investigation
The investigation was initially handled by the Swiss Federal Office of Civil Aviation, as the aircraft and pilot had been transported across the border following the accident. The commission examined the flight history, the pilot's experience—which included approximately 100 total flights—and the technical condition of the aircraft. There were no recorded technical defects regarding the OE-0231 prior to the accident. The investigation also noted that the flight school's operations at the airfield were being conducted while the instructor awaited formal approval from the Federal Office of Civil Aviation for the training week.