Fatal British Midair

The AAIB is the British equivalent of the U.S.’s National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB), tasked with investigating British glider accidents to determine their circumstances and causes, aiming to prevent future occurrences. Republished with permission.

During a gliding competition flight, both gliders entered a thermal just to the south of Melton Mowbray at a similar height. Although the gliders were initially on opposite sides of the thermal, changes in the angle of bank of both gliders brought their flight paths into conflict and they collided. The pilot of G-CLXG was able to land his glider safely and was uninjured but the tail of G-KADS was severed in the collision and the glider descended out of control. The pilot was fatally injured.

The British Gliding Association (BGA) took action to raise awareness regarding the increased risk of midair collisions in gliding competitions.

Both gliders were taking part in a competition being held at Husbands Bosworth gliding centre. The competition took the form of a multi-day event with a different route and task set daily for the participants. Both the pilot of G-CLXG and the pilot of G-KADS had significant experience in gliding and fixed wing flying. Both had flown numerous competitions before and had operated in many different environments.