At 00:52 03 February 2018, wrote:


I only recall two. One in Minden in the 1970s caused (IIRC) by not
locking the main pins so they ratcheted out and departed the fuselage
(pilot bailed out successfully). The other was a PIO at Fairfield in the
late 90s (?)

Chip, there was at least one more, and it was fatal. It was an
ASW-19 which was owned by Einar Enevoldson and a USAF test
pilot partner. Einar's partner was practicing high speed starts (so it
may not actually have been during a contest) when he got the
elevator into a flutter mode. IIRC, the stabilizer came off, and he
was killed. I think it happened in CA, and there were law suit issues
so that the USA Schleicher dealer would have had legal issues had he
set foot in CA afterwards. The time frame was early 1980's. After
that, an AD came out to cut two triangular slivers (max 1" wide) off
the elevator trailing edges.

RO