A GLIDER pilot survived a mid-air collision after crawling through a hole in his shattered aircraft as it plummeted to the ground and parachuted to safety.

Steve Algeo, 50, was found dangling from trees by firefighters, suffering from nothing worse than cuts and bruises.

He was cut free and managed to walk away from the scene.

His escape was revealed in the official report into the mid-air collision between two gliders above Sutton Bank, near Thirsk, North Yorkshire, on October 2.

The second pilot, Peter Heywood, 48, a company director from Finedon, near Wellingborough, in North-amptonshire, died in the head-on crash at 1,500ft.

His body was found close to the wreckage of his glider.

Debris from the collision was scattered over a quarter of a mile of the hillside.

The report is published today by the Air Accidents Investigation Branch, which is part of the Department for Transport and is responsible for the investigation of civil aircraft accidents and serious incidents within the United Kingdom

The report states it was not clear whether Mr Heywood had managed to get out of his glider before it hit the ground, but confirmed that his parachute had not been opened.

It says electronic equipment fitted to his canopy may have prevented him from escaping.

In the report, Mr Algeo, from Corby, Northamptonshire, describes how he suddenly saw the other glider heading towards him after the pair had been in the air for several hours.

He attempted to take evasive action, but his efforts failed and the two gliders collided.

He managed to climb through the hole in the damaged canopy to make his escape.

The canopies are designed so that they can be jettisoned in an emergency to allow the pilot to escape.

But the report states that examination of Mr Heywood's glider found the canopy was severely damaged in the collision. The jettison procedure had been initiated but not completed before it hit the ground.

The report says Mr Heywood's glider had electronic equipment attached to the glare shield and canopy frame.

It says: "Had the jettison sequence been completed, it is probable that the wiring to the components installed on the canopy frame and glare shield would have prevented the canopy from being successfully jettisoned and the pilot would not have been able to leave the glider."

Mr Algeo and Mr Heywood were both members of the Welland Gliding Club, in Northamptonshire, and were on a club trip to the Yorkshire Gliding Club, at Sutton Bank, when the accident happened.