Glungezer
The Glungezer is a mountain in the Tux Alps in Tyrol southeast of Innsbruck in Austria.
| Glungezer | |
|---|---|
_von_Innsbruck.JPG.webp) The Glungezer (high peak in centre of photo) and Sonnenspitze (high peak right of centre, w/ less snow coverage) seen from Innsbruck. Left foreground: the Bärenbader Jöchl, right: the Neunerspitze (2,285 m) | |
| Highest point | |
| Elevation | 2,677 m (AA) (8,783 ft) |
| Prominence | 36 m (118 ft)  |
| Isolation | 1.06 km (0.66 mi) |
| Coordinates | 47°12′31″N 11°31′41″E |
| Geography | |
| Parent range | Tux Alps |
| Geology | |
| Age of rock | Paläozoikum |
| Mountain type | quartz-phyllite |
History
Origin of the name
The name "Glungezer" (historical spelling also Glunggezer[1]) probably goes back to an onomatopoeic imitation of gurgling water. In a hollow above the Tulfeinalm, but also in other places, the water flows invisibly between and under the boulders.[2]
Aircraft accident
On 29 February 1964, a British Eagle Bristol Britannia 312 collided with the eastern slopes of the Glungezer at a height of 2,600 metres above sea level. The aeroplane was on the approach to Innsbruck and was flying under Visual Flight Rules. However, the pilots failed to break through the clouds.[3] All 75 passengers and eight crew members were killed. The plane that flew into the mountain triggered an avalanche that carried most of the debris 400 metres further down the mountain. Even the innkeepers of the Glungezer Hut, which was only a few hundred metres from the crash site, did not notice the crash because of the raging storm.[4]
References
- Freiherr von Hausmann, Franz (1852). Flora von Tirol. Ein Verzeichniss der in Tirol und Vorarlberg wild wachsenden und häufiger gebauten Gefäßpflanzen. Innsbruck: Wagner. p. 969 (Glungezer at Google Books)
- Aichner, Gerald (1994). Der weiße Berg. Das Glungezerbuch. 2nd edn. Vienna, Munich: Thaur, ISBN 3-85395-189-9, pp. 10 ff.
- Accident report at Aviation Safety Network.
- Aichner (1994), pp. 235-242.
External links
