Accident to the Schempp Hirth - Ventus2C registered G-TABB occured on 14/07/2017 at Val des Prés

1 - History of the flight

Note: the following information comes from a witness statement and the data recorded by the glider onboard system.

The pilot, the owner of the glider, performed a towed take-off around 12:10 from the Serres La Bâtie-Montsaléon aerodrome in the Hautes-Alpes. Another pilot took off shortly afterwards onboard a second powered glider. Together, they headed north?east to fly a circuit while keeping radio contact.

Around 16:10, the second pilot saw the G-TABB for the last time at an altitude of 3,200 m looking for thermal updrafts.

At 16:27, owing to the cloud layer present north of the Mont-Cenis lake (in the Savoie), the second pilot advised by radio that he was heading back to the Serres La Bâtie?Montsaléon aerodrome. The pilot of the G-TABB replied that he was doing the same. This was their last exchange by radio.

The second pilot landed at 17:35 at the Serres La Bâtie-Montsaléon aerodrome. Around 19:00, friends of the G-TABB pilot were worried that they had had no news from him.  The emergency services were contacted around 21:30, 30 minutes after sunset.

The search operations took place throughout the night and the next day. The wreckage of the glider was located at an altitude of 2,470 m on the north-east slope of the Crête de Peyrolle, 130 m below the ridge.