Hermann Geiger (27 October 1914 - 26 August 1966) was a

Swiss Swiss may refer to: * the adjectival form of Switzerland * Swiss people Places * Swiss, Missouri * Swiss, North Carolina *Swiss, West Virginia * Swiss, Wisconsin Other uses *Swiss-system tournament, in various games and sports *Swiss Internation ...

aviator An aircraft pilot or aviator is a person who controls the flight of an aircraft by operating its Aircraft flight control system, directional flight controls. Some other aircrew, aircrew members, such as navigators or flight engineers, are al ...

and

search and rescue Search and rescue (SAR) is the search for and provision of aid to people who are in distress or imminent danger. The general field of search and rescue includes many specialty sub-fields, typically determined by the type of terrain the search ...

pilot whose heroic actions gave him national hero status in Switzerland. Known as "The Glacier Pilot," he pioneered the art of landing his Piper PA-18 on glaciers in the

Swiss Alps The Alpine region of Switzerland, conventionally referred to as the Swiss Alps (german: Schweizer Alpen, french: Alpes suisses, it, Alpi svizzere, rm, Alps svizras), represents a major natural feature of the country and is, along with the Swiss ...

like no other. In over 600 rescue missions, he managed to land his specially modified aircraft under extreme conditions on snow-covered glaciers. He often had to carry the injured people by himself in subzero temperatures and blizzard conditions to get them safely aboard his plane. Geiger once said "To save lives, you must risk your own." He died from injuries suffered in a fatal collision with a glider at the age of 52. In aviation history, Geiger is the first man to successfully land on a glacier and one of the first mountain rescuers.

Biography

Geigers was from

Sion Sion may refer to * an alternative transliteration of Zion People * Sion (name) or Siôn, a Welsh and other given name and surname, including a list of people and fictional characters with the name * Shion or Sion, a Japanese given name Plac ...

in Valais, Switzerland, the son of a farmer. His love of flying began at the age of ten when he went to an aviation club for the first time. He began working as a mechanic when he was fifteen at a garage. He built his own

glider Glider may refer to: Aircraft and transport Aircraft * Glider (aircraft), heavier-than-air aircraft primarily intended for unpowered flight ** Glider (sailplane), a rigid-winged glider aircraft with an undercarriage, used in the sport of glidin ...

and took gliding lessons as a young man. In 1940, he trained to become a police officer, giving flying lessons in his spare time. He was the first man to land his plane on Kanderfirm, a 7,800 foot glacier in Switzerland. He modified his Piper plane with retractable metal skies, enabling him, after much practice, to land on glaciers and mountains where most would not dare. On 16 July 1953, he also successfully landed on the summit of Monte Rosa glacier. Geiger was known as the ''Eagle from Sion'' or ''King of Mountain Pilots''. He wrote a book: ''Alpine Pilot'' first published in 1956 and translated into English by Alan Tuppen It is a concise and interesting personal account of his achievement and joy of flying and has a real place in Alpine history alongside all the best. Hermann Geiger was a world-renowned Gletscherpilot and one of the founders of the

Swiss Air Rescue Swiss Air-Rescue (German: ''Schweizerische Rettungsflugwacht'', French: ''Garde aérienne suisse de sauvetage'', Italian: ''Guardia aerea svizzera di soccorso'', Rega) is a private, non-profit air rescue service that pro ...

(Rega). He was the inventor of a landing technique for snow slopes to rescue climbers in distress. He led more than 600 daring rescues with his single-engine Piper PA-18 through the high mountains. In 1958, he played himself in semi-documentary Swiss feature film called
SOS Glacier Pilot
' in 1959. Geiger was also a member of th

On 26, August 1966, he was flying with a student at the

Sion airport Sion Airport, german: Flughafen Sitten, it, Aeroporto di Sion, rm, Eroport da Sion (Military: LSMS) is the airport of the city of Sion, Switzerland and is located 2.5 km southwest of Sion city in the Rhone Valley. The airport opened in ...

when they collided with a glider. Geiger died from injuries as a result of the accident. A few days later, many people attended his funeral.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Geiger, Hermann Swiss aviators 1914 births 1966 deaths Victims of aviation accidents or incidents in Switzerland