Clare hang glider had flown less than 100 metres before fatal crash, says preliminary report

Michael Flynn, a married father of two, died in an accident involving his Airwave hang glider which crashed in a field around 1km outside Miltown Malbay

A preliminary report by the Air Accident Investigation Unit into the incident said evidence gathered from the accident site indicated the pilot had travelled less than 100 metres off the ground after launching the hang glider before impacting terrain in the same field. Picture: Air Accident Investigation Unit

A Clare man killed after his powered hang glider crashed in a field near his home last month had travelled less than 100m before hitting the ground, a preliminary report into the accident has revealed.

Michael Flynn, a married father of two from Kilcorcoran, Miltown Malbay, suffered fatal injuries in an accident involving his Airwave hang glider which crashed in an agricultural field around 1km outside Miltown Malbay on September 18.

The pilot, who worked as a farmer and plumber, had taken off from the field off the Ballard Road near the Co Clare town at around 4pm.

A preliminary report by the Air Accident Investigation Unit into the incident said evidence gathered from the accident site indicated the pilot had travelled less than 100m off the ground after launching the hang glider before impacting terrain in the same field.

No fire was reported in the hang glider which only suffered minor damage. The Air Accident Investigation Unit report said its investigation team had spoken to three eyewitnesses who had seen the hang glider on the day of the accident.

One individual reported seeing Mr Flynn preparing the hang glider prior to flight on one side of a field. Sometime later, the witness saw the hang glider on the other side of the field but did not immediately suspect that anything was amiss.

The witness said they went over to the scene after noting the equipment was still in the same position for a period and discovered the pilot secured in the hang glider’s harness. The individual raised the alarm with other local residents and also contacted the emergency services.

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Two other people who were visiting a nearby house said they saw Mr Flynn in a field with the hang glider and could hear its engine running. One witness, who was using a pair of binoculars, said they saw the pilot launch the hang glider and kick his legs back into the harness once airborne.

During this action, the witness said the glider jerked slightly and veered left before rapidly pitching downwards towards the ground. Due to a lack of familiarity with hang gliding, the individual was not aware that the pilot might have been injured but recalled they could hear the engine still running.

Air Accident Investigation Unit inspectors revealed that one propellor blade was broken into three from the impact of the crash with the tip section embedded into the hang glider wing which was torn. A variometer used to measure the rate of climb or descent of a flight was found detached from the hang glider.

The Air Accident Investigation Unit said its investigation into the crash was ongoing and a full report would be published in due course.