Date:	Saturday 2 February 2019
Time:	13:10 LT
Type:	HpH Glasflügel 304MS Shark
Owner/operator:	Southdown Gliding Club.
Registration:	G-OHPH
MSN:	021-MS
Fatalities:	Fatalities: 0 / Occupants: 1
Aircraft damage:	Destroyed
Location:	Chanctonbury Ring, near Steyning, West Sussex -   United Kingdom
Phase:	En route
Nature:	Private
Departure airport:	Parham Airfield, West Sussex
Destination airport:	Parham Airfield, West Sussex
Confidence Rating:	Information is only available from news, social media or unofficial sources

Narrative:
A glider pilot has been rescued after their aircraft crashed into trees in Chanctonbury Ring, near Steyning, West Sussex. A West Sussex Fire and Rescue spokesman said they were called at 1.10pm following the accident.The glider pilot was uninjured but stuck 30ft from the ground. At at 4.37pm, a fire service spokesman confirmed the man was rescued from his aircraft with the assistance of an HM Coastguard AW189 helicopter

According to the BGA (British Gliding Association) Final Report (see link #1)

"This was a ridge run along the South Downs ridge, out of Parham, flown by a Parham Instructor in his Shark, with wind 340°at 118 knots. During the flight, the pilot successfully crossed 'the Steyning Gap', east of Chanctonbury Hill and continued eastwards to Lewes. On returning west, he crossed the Steyning gap westbound and decided to gain height above the bowl to the east of Chanctonbury Ring, to give enough height for a comfortable return to Parham.

At this point the pilot the pilot felt a 'push' from behind and the glider fell into a steep dive which resulted in impact with trees on the slope. The trees arrested the glider above ground level. Locating and accessing the site was difficult and the emergency services took almost 4 hours to secure the-glider in the trees, allowing a coastguard helicopter winchman to safely extract the pilot, who was uninjured

A Parham pilot following a few minutes behind the Shark saw the glider in the trees. He called Mayday on 129.98. This was relayed on 121.5 by another glider on the ridge. Parham was called and a club member called 999 on his mobile phone. He was the club contact from then on. An airborne glider gave Lat. and Long. to Parham, which was passed to emergency services, who were having difficulty locating the glider. The 999 line remained open for half an hour until they reached the site. Damage to the glider's radio antenna precluded communication with the pilot. The pilot did not carry a PLB.

The left wing struck trees on the ridge, sloping up on the glider's port side, resulting in a yaw to the left, leaving the glider facing back along Its track, steeply nose down

Damage to Aircraft:
Fuselage snapped forward of fin. All airframe components suffered damage to a significant extent. The cockpit and canopy were iritact.

Conclusions:
The pilot was current and familiar with the Southdowns ridge.The flight had proceeded without incident for 2:45 hours, being flown conservatively for the conditions. An unexplained upset as the glider was flying above a bowl caused a stall which was not recoverable in the height available. The pilot is sure this was not a spin

Per the above damage report by the BGA, the registration G-OHPH was cancelled by the CAA on 28 February 2019 as "destroyed"

1. BGA (British Gliding Association) Final report: https://members.gliding.co.uk/library/investigation-reports/shark-bga-accident-report-2019/
2. https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-sussex-47108039
3. https://www.worthingherald.co.uk/news/chanctonbury-ring-rescue-glider-pilot-saved-after-four-hour-operation-1-8795383
4. https://www.midhurstandpetworth.co.uk/news/glider-pilot-stuck-30ft-from-ground-after-crash-in-sussex-beauty-spot-1-8795070
5. https://www.westsussextoday.co.uk/news/glider-pilot-stuck-in-trees-at-sussex-beauty-spot-is-saved-after-four-hour-operation-1-8795388
6. https://www.theargus.co.uk/news/17405196.hang-glider-rescued-from-tree-at-chanctonbury-ring-video/
7. https://forums.flyer.co.uk/viewtopic.php?f=1&t=111167&sid=5fe321a2188abb71197e15cc04a8044d
8. http://hmcoastguard.blogspot.com/2019/02/gilder-rescued-after-crashing-landing.html
9. http://hphuk.co.uk/author/hphadmin/page/4/
10. http://www.rcawsey.co.uk/g-ohph.jpg

HpH-304MS Shark G-OHPH over the South Downs National Park near Wiston, West Sussex, United Kingdom 8 May 2017:

Watch the dramatic rescue of a glider pilot who was left hanging in mid-air for several hours after crashing into trees. pic.twitter.com/chm7tVDMRa

— BBC South East (@bbcsoutheast) February 3, 2019

A glider had a lucky escape yesterday after crashing into trees and finding himself completely stuck 50ft up. Find out how the coastguard helicopter @WestSussexFire @SECAmbulance rescued him here: https://t.co/dZfWwZcdqk thanks @brightonsnapper for the great pics pic.twitter.com/wWBXBUHyjW

— Maritime&Coastguard (@MCA_media) February 3, 2019

Date/time	Contributor	Updates
03-Feb-2019 16:33	Dr. John Smith	Added
03-Feb-2019 17:10	Aerossurance	Updated [Time, Departure airport, Embed code, Narrative]
03-Feb-2019 18:10	Aerossurance	Updated [Source, Embed code]
03-Feb-2019 21:08	Anon.	Updated [Aircraft type, Embed code]
04-Feb-2019 08:05	Alpine Flight	Updated [Time, Aircraft type, Registration, Cn, Source]
29-Sep-2020 23:31	Dr. John Smith	Updated [Operator, Destination airport, Source, Embed code, Narrative]