Two dead after glider planes crash in East Kootenays 2011, afternoon, control

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Two dead after glider planes crash in East Kootenays
The pilots collided just south of Invermere
Adam Forsythe Sep 04, 2011 05:08:54 AM
0 INVERMERE (NEWS1130) - Two men have died after their glider planes collided in the East Kootenays Saturday afternoon.

According to RCMP Corporal Dan Moskaluk, it happened just after 3 pm.

"The two planes were gliding in the same thermal lift and at one point contacted wings, causing both to lose control and crash into the side of Mount Swansea," he says. "This accident was witnessed by another sailplane pilot, as well as several other people hiking on the mountain. The hikers were able to quickly locate the crash site, however neither pilot survived the crash."

The pilots were the sole occupants of either sailplane, and police say both were experienced flyers. The men who died were a 50-year old man from Calgary and a 59-year old man from Kelowna. Their names have not been released.