Christoph Andreas Sattler in Pokhara. Photograph: Tom de Dorlodot
A German acro pilot is missing in Nepal after a stunt to celebrate his 200th flight in Pokhara went tragically wrong.
Christoph Andreas Sattler, 26, jumped from his harness while still 15-20 m [edited 13 Feb] above Phewa Tal, the lake in Pokhara, on Friday 5 February.
According to friends he was celebrating his 200th flight in Pokhara and wanted to backflip into the lake.
Online reports from the Kathmandu Post and NepalNews.com say he failed to surface after hitting the water chest first.
A search of the lake failed to find him on Friday and the search was called off until Saturday.
Tom de Dorlodot, a Red Bull X-Alps pilot, told Cross Country:
“I spent one month in Nepal with Chris, flying acro every day. He was a great guy. I can not stop crying at his loss.
“Here is what I heard from people and some of our friends who were there when this tragedy happened: Chris had done his 200th flight in Pokhara and wanted to celebrate by doing a backflip and jumping from his harness into the lake.
“He unstrapped and jumped but hit the water hard, head first. He probably did not calculate the height right and did not land properly. He never came back up.
“He was a great guy. He was an amazing guy, super friendly and totally passionate about paragliding. He was a paragliding instructor who loved to share his passion.”
Pokhara’s superintendent of police Ramesh Kharel told the German Press Agency, DPA: “He reportedly hit the water surface with his chest and went missing soon afterwards … We searched for him the entire afternoon but were unable to find a trace of him.”
He added: “We have suspended the search for the night and will resume at first light tomorrow.”
The search continued Saturday 6 February.
Added 11 Feb 2010: News reports from Nepal confirmed that Christoph’s body was recovered from Phewa Tal lake on 11 February 2010.
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