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| Date: | Sunday 6 June 1965 |
| Time: | c. 16:30 |
| Type: | AB Flygplan Grunau Baby IIB-2 |
| Owner/operator: | Whakatane Gliding Club |
| Registration: | ZK-GDH |
| MSN: | 121 |
| Fatalities: | Fatalities: 1 / Occupants: 1 |
| Other fatalities: | 0 |
| Aircraft damage: | Destroyed |
| Location: | near Whakatane Airport, Bay of Plenty 3 -
 New Zealand
|
| Phase: | Unknown |
| Nature: | Private |
| Departure airport: | NZWK |
| NZWK | |
| Confidence Rating: |  Information is only available from news, social media or unofficial sources |
The glider was towed uneventfully to 2,500 feet in the air and the pilot released the tow line.
The aircraft descended gradually to about 1,100 feet, at which point it was seen to suddenly enter a steep dive, pulling out at about 500 feet and returning to level flight briefly.
It then entered another steep dive, crashing in lupin-covered sandhills about 1,300 yards from the boundary of Whakatane Aerodrome.
The pilot Laurence Andrew McLaren was found dead in the wreckage.
An examination of the glider revealed no defects, but a post-mortem examination of the pilot showed serious cardiac problems and it is believed that he was incapacitated in flight by a heart attack.
Sources:
1. NZ Dept of Civil Aviation accident investigator's report
2. David Rendel, 1975, Civil Aviation in New Zealand, Reed.
Revision history:
| Date/time | Contributor | Updates |
|---|---|---|
| 20-May-2011 05:55 | angels one five | Added |
| 20-May-2011 23:55 | angels one five | Updated [Source, Narrative, ] |
| 21-May-2011 02:47 | angels one five | Updated [Source, Narrative, ] |
| 21-Apr-2013 21:54 | angels one five | Updated [Time, Aircraft type, Registration, Cn, Location, Departure airport, Destination airport, Narrative, ] |
| 26-Jan-2016 21:02 | TB | Updated [Time, Aircraft type, Location, Phase, Source, Narrative, ] |
| 14-May-2018 19:20 | Ron Averes | Updated [Operator, ] |
| 25-Sep-2021 02:10 | Ron Averes | Updated [Location, ] |
| 28-Sep-2021 00:11 | Ron Averes | Updated [Aircraft type, Source, ] |
| 06-Oct-2021 21:22 | Ron Averes | Updated [Location, ] |
| 14-Feb-2022 02:39 | Ron Averes | Updated [Location, ] |
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