Terrible news. Having just flown a V2CX in South Africa (with SPOT) I wonder if the pilot was trying to start the engine too low and got into trouble. Hard to tell from the wreck photos. Apparently he went head on, likely from a low altitude spin. Depending on the area in Namibia good places to land out may be few and far between.

Also, the pilot had not logged any flights since his arrival on OLC, which is customary.
More photos of the wreck he

http://internationalflyerz.co.za/viewtopic.php?t=22363

Juan

On Monday, January 4, 2016 at 1:02:10 PM UTC-5, smfidler wrote:
Its really sad. The sport is so fun, but the accidents are so tragic. I really think we need to be more open about the causes, share the traces, more promptly share the facts so that we all can understand the reasons and make changes, if mecessary, to our own decision making process.

Was this an error in judgement?

Was is medical? Heat? Long flight?

Did the glider break?

Why no tracker? Did it fail? User Error?

With each accident, huge amounts of information is held close to the chest by many (I have been guilty of this myself) in order to protect themselves, or the feelings of others. I get it...but big picture...shouldnt we all be able to see the IGC traces of any glider accident. No commentary, respect, but the chance to see the general decision making if it was pilot error.

I know these ideas have a snowballs chance in hell. But I wish they were accepted.

I want my trace shared if I am killed in an accident. I want people to learn all that they can from any mistake I make. I will have no ego left to bruise!

Sean