Tornado locates downed pilot
Well done the boys.
Surprised he didn´t carry a beacon or handheld radio, can´t rely on a phone mast in that part of the country. But then, I didn´t know gliders had windows.....
The Times: Glider pilot found after 24 hours in wreckage
A PILOT whose glider crashed into a remote Scottish mountain has been found alive after spending 24 hours trapped in the cockpit of his mangled aircraft. John Russell, 64, from York, was spotted waving from a smashed window by one of three RAF Tornado jets that had been searching for him since first light yesterday.
Mr Russell was cut free from the wreckage by rescuers. He was suffering from an ankle injury, dehydration, cuts, bruises and shock. He was airlifted by Sea King helicopter to Aberdeen Royal Infirmary from the 1,157ft summit of Beinn A Bhuird, approximately six miles north of Braemar. His fiancée and family travelled from England and were at the hospital when he arrived shortly after 8pm.
Mr Russell, who is an experienced flying instructor, was reported missing on Monday night after failing to return from a cross-country competition, organised by Deeside Gliding Club, in Aboyne, Aberdeenshire. Fears grew for his safety after two mountain rescue teams, four Sea King search and rescue helicopters and three Tornado jets with thermal imaging equipment initially failed to find any trace of his aircraft in more than 1,000sq miles of rugged mountain terrain. Staff at the Aeronautical Rescue Coordination Centre (ARCC) at RAF Kinloss had been on the verge of calling off the search yesterday when he was found at about 5.30pm.
It is believed that Mr Russell, who has 1,000 hours of flying gliders and has won major accolades with the British Gliding Association, had been planning to fly around the Loch Moy and Boat of Garten regions in Strathspey as well as the Inverness area. He was flying a one-seater Ventus 2 glider, which is capable of reaching altitudes of up to 18,000ft and can stay airborne for up to eight hours. Paul Boath, of Deeside Gliding Club, said that Mr Russell was a visiting member from a Yorkshire gliding club and was an instructor in the sport. “He is an experienced pilot who has gained more than 1,000 hours flying gliders,” he said. “He has gained the major accolades that are given by the British Gliding Association and is experienced in gliding competitions.”
The T-shaped glider did not contain any medical or tracking equipment and Mr Russell’s only means of communication with the competition’s organisers was by mobile phone, which was either drained of power or had no signal. He had set off at about 10.30am and staff at the gliding club became concerned when he had not returned by 9.20pm on Monday.
But last night Grampian Police said: “We can confirm that the glider pilot has been found on Beinn A Bhuird, a hill approximately six miles north of Braemar. He was found within the wreckage of his glider. “Grampian Fire and Rescue assisted to cut the male from the wreckage and he is being transported to Aberdeen Royal Infirmary for treatment for his injuries.”