[hanger1]

I was part of the EMS crew that responded to this crash incident a couple of weeks ago and have had so many questions going through my mind since that day. I couldn't figure out what could have gone wrong. I have seen plenty a hard landing, and treated a few orthopedic injuries off duty; as a H1 and D4 , close friend to many hang glider pilots, and also the wife to one-- this incident was very close to home. I'm sure no one understands why this crash occurred, and we likely never will. My thoughts and prayers go out to all of those that know and loved the pilot. What a tragic loss to the community and to his family.

Accidents like this are an unfortunate thing, and I hope everyone takes note. Be careful, this awesome sport isn't without risk.... nothing fun is. Be safe out there. And if your gut tells you something doesn't feel right, pack it up and go home.

,
H1, D4 (Driver)

[Rob McKenzie]

I spent the day with Haim's ex-wife one day last week. We inspected the powered harness and damage it received. We inspected the glider and its damage. There was one witness and I had a chance to ask her questions. We saw the place of impact and were informed of the exact position of the glider immediately after impact. I have assembled the following text which I tried to upload to the USHPA incident page last week but it was having server issues. I will try to upload it again. It's the best I can do with all the info. It does connect a lot of dots and to me is the most likely scenario...
I didn't get an exact time of accident.

Pilot Haim Amir #79651
Feb 13th 2010, mid afternoon, Salton Sea, Fatal

Doodle bug powered harness. 0 to 4 mph smooth wind. Sandy open level field launch and landing. Haim launched and began a series of tight box patterns each time getting a bit higher on downwind. On each circuit, the upwind legs were characterized by a steep dive toward the ground and pull up using the kinetic energy to gain height again. About his 3rd or 4th upwind dive he misjudged the ground clearance and contacted the ground. The base tube had narrow plastic split wheels not sufficient for the soft sand and the base tube stuck on contact. This caused a sudden nose down and hard "whack". The pilot swung forward through the control bar to impact the keel in a sitting position with the motor impacting his mid back. Severe injuries to legs arm and neck led to death at the scene. Location of accident is:
32 degrees 21' 09" N
115 degrees 58' 12" W
Pilot traveling WSW wings level ~30 mph at moment of impact.

[Fenser-13]

wow . my condolences to family and friends...

[BBJCaptain]

My condolences to family and friends......Having just lost both of my Parents this Year, I feel their pain

When My Mom watched me ridge soar for the first time she wrote me this poem and I keep it in the pocket of my harness every time I fly


SPREAD YOUR WINGS MY CHILD
FEAR NOT, THIS STEP YOU WILL TAKE
SOAR ABOVE THY HUMAN REALM
ON THE PATH, THAT I SHALL MAKE;

JOURNEY TO THY HEIGHTS, ON GENTLE WINDS
DRIFTING INTO THIS, ENDLESS SPACE
RISING ON GOLDEN RAYS
FEELING MY WARM EMBRACE;

YOU HAVE TOUCHED
UPON MY DOMAIN,
FEELING THE PEACE
WHICH WILL FOREVER REMAIN;

FOR WHEN YOU RETURN,
REMEMBER ME
I HAVE HELD YOU IN MY PALM,
AND WILL FOR ETERNITY.



God Speed Haim

[Bobfly]

What a wonderful poem. Thank you for sharing...

[lostgriz]

Beautiful poem! Thank You.

RIP Haim