Aberdeen Man Dies In Paragliding Accident In Thailand

Aberdeen man dies in paragliding accident in Thailand

A retired electronics engineer from Aberdeen has died in a paragliding accident in Thailand.

Colin Rose, 53, had been on holiday visiting his son when he plunged to his death in north-east Thailand.

His son, David, had moved to Thailand three months ago from his home in the Seaton area of Aberdeen to live with his Thai girlfriend.

His father had gone out to visit him with the intention, in the long term, of making his home in Thailand.

Yesterday Mr Rose, 33, a builder, told how he watched helplessly as his father was suddenly caught in an updraft.

At the police station in Nakorn Ratchassima, 200 miles north of Bangkok, Mr Rose said: "The wind broke the glider's wing. My father was too close to the cliff. There was little he could do. There was no time to recover."

He said his father had travelled to Thailand at his invitation to stay with his new family.

"My father had had heart trouble and had retired as an electronics engineer. But he was still quite a competent paraglider pilot," he said.

"I had taken a flight only a few minutes before and my father was just taking his turn. The gust that took the glider was quite severe. He was dashed against the cliff.

"We were flying at a place called Si Kiew. I have flown there often before."

Mr Rose said he planned a private funeral in Thailand. "There is no immediate family left in Scotland and I was the only son," he said.

Source: The Herald - 20 January 2007