Helicopter rescue from gondola

On Wednesday afternoon, there was a technical malfunction of the cable car at the Technical Center for Protective and Special Technologies (WTD 52). A cabin with 14 people was stuck about 300 meters below the mountain station for about six hours. All occupants were able to be safely rescued in the afternoon.

With the use of two SAR (Search and Rescue) helicopters from the Transport Helicopter Regiment 30 in Niederstetten, the Traunstein rescue helicopter "Christoph 14," and an additional 20 emergency personnel from the civilian mountain rescue teams of Bad Reichenhall, Freilassing, Teisendorf-Anger, and Traunstein, all those affected in the cabin were rescued before nightfall.

The individuals were lowered from the cabin and picked up by the helicopters using winches. Prior to this, officials from WTD 52 had sent a rescue gondola with mountain rescuers from the valley station towards the site of the incident in order to secure all persons to be rescued in rescue seats and lower them down about 170 meters to the base of the cliff. Additional mountain rescuers then guided the individuals to a better pickup point for the recovery flight of the two SAR helicopters to the landing site at the WTD 52.

The cable car of WTD 52 is a 2,100-meter long aerial tramway that is regularly maintained. The gondola lift runs from Oberjettenberg to the high plateau of the Reiteralpe and serves to supply the technical testing grounds and mountain training area. The cable car was put into operation in 1965 and covers a height difference of 1,036 meters. It has only one support pillar, with a span of 1,980 meters. A special feature of the cable car is that the cabin can be exchanged for a cargo carriage for transporting large loads in a matter of minutes. It can carry a maximum of 15 people.

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