Glider crashed within 18 seconds of impact as report published into fatal Melton glider collision

A glider pilot who collided with another glider during a competition crashed down within 18 seconds, a report has said.

The Air Accident Investigation Branch (AAIB) have published a report in to a fatal collision between two gliders which caused one to come down in a field off Leicester Road in Melton.

Emergency services were called to the scene on 17th August last year following reports a glider had come down in a field.

The report, published today (Thursday) says the aircraft came down within 18 seconds of the collision.

It reads: “It is possible the pilot was rendered unconscious by the collision or the forces on him due to the motion of the glider once it lost its tail meant he could not make any attempt to abandon the aircraft before it struck the ground. The time between the collision and G-KADS striking the ground was 18 seconds.”

The scene in August. Photo: Michael Riley Aerial Media

Two experienced pilots were following a set route taking them from Husbands Bosworth Airfield to Scalford Church, north of Melton, before turning south and heading towards their next destination in Oxford.

Despite damage to the wing, the second pilot was able to land safely in a field off Sandy Lane in Melton.

Both pilots would have been given a warning of about four to five seconds of a potential mid-air collision by their on-board computers, according to AAIB investigators.

At least one of the gliders was not on the recommended alert setting for competitions, which may have been a factor in the collision occurring.

The British Gliding Association has taken action to raise awareness regarding the increased risk of mid-air collisions in gliding competitions following the incident, says the report.

You can read the report in full, here.