On 9 June 2023, an accident occurred at the Dahlemer Binz airfield involving a self-launching Nimbus 3 DM glider, which lost power during the initial climb.
The 46-year-old pilot and another pilot with an instructor licence, who was formally on board as a passenger, had planned a long gliding flight. Shortly after take-off, the engine power decreased, whereupon the pilot decided to make an emergency landing on the airfield grounds. During the emergency landing, the aircraft touched the ground with its left wing, spun and skidded over a distance of 87 metres before coming to a halt with severe damage. The pilot was seriously injured.
The aircraft, a self-launcher with a wingspan of 24.60 metres and a Solo 2625-2 engine, was built in 1991 and had approximately 6,265 hours of operational time prior to the accident. The pilot had extensive flying experience, including 350 hours on the accident model. An initial take-off attempt was aborted due to poor engine performance, but a subsequent engine shutdown test showed no abnormalities. The accident occurred in good weather conditions with cloudless skies
Source references:
Federal Bureau of Aircraft Accident Investigation