The Swiss Hang and Paragliding Federation is to investigate
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https://xcmag.com/news/swiss-hang-gliding-federation-to-investigate-swiss-mishap
The Swiss Hang and Paragliding Federation is to investigate the circumstances around the commercial tandem hang-gliding flight in Interlaken that saw US tourist Chris Gursky hanging on for his life.
Published on YouTube yesterday by Gursky, the clip was picked up by media around the world and clocked up more than a million views in its first 24 hours online. It is well on its way to becoming the most watched hang gliding video on YouTube ever.
He said: “In principle hang gliding isn’t a dangerous sport. Every year there are thousands of commercial tandem flights in Interlaken, without the slightest incident.”
However, he added, “On the video a mistake is clearly visible. This should never have happened.
“The preflight check is an elementary and important routine of every flight, and is part of [basic] training. It’s really tragic that in this case it obviously wasn’t done properly.”
Stocker praised the pilot’s actions after take-off. “The pilot’s reaction after the take-off was very good. Without any jerky movement – which would have ended fatally – he steered the glider as smoothly and quickly as possible towards the landing.”
He added: “Because it is a serious incident we will continue the investigation.”
Interlaken, where the “Swiss Mishap” occurred, is a popular site for commercial tandem flights. It sees an estimated 40,000 paragliding and hang gliding tandem flights a year.
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