TS-8 Bies crash in Dziwiszów (1968)

Crash of the Polish TS-8 Bies trainer aircraft – an air crash which occurred in the locality of Dziwiszów near Jelenia Góra on 17 May 1968 at 10:52.

Circumstances of the crash

The event occurred during a flight on the route from Wrocław to Ławica airfield near Poznań. The pilots of the aircraft during the flight were Lieutenant Colonel Marian Chrzan, sitting in the front cockpit, and Major Ireneusz Ryndak, sitting in the rear cockpit. During the 19th minute of the flight, at a distance of about 10–15 kilometres before Jelenia Góra, the aircraft encountered an area of significant weather deterioration, which made it impossible for the pilots to fly with sight of the ground. Consequently, the pilots made a turn in the clouds towards Ławica airfield while simultaneously increasing altitude.

After completing the turn, the machine clipped the treetops with its forward section, as a result of which the propeller hub was damaged. Then another stall of the aircraft occurred, and it collided with the forest in the area of the locality of Dziwiszów.

As a result of the crash, Lieutenant Colonel Marian Chrzan suffered general bodily injuries, while Major Ireneusz Ryndak fell out of the aircraft's cockpit and died of head injuries after being struck by the R-800 radio unit torn from its mounting.