‘He was a beautiful man’ — tributes to Albany great-grandfather Wilf Pinchen after fatal paragliding crash

It was a picture-perfect day at Shelley Beach when great-grandfather Wilf Pinchen, 76, took off on his final paragliding flight. As he soared over the water at West Cape Howe National Park about 12.45pm on Saturday, something went wrong. Mr Pinchen crashed into the Southern Ocean, sparking a search effort which led to the recovery of his body between Shelley Beach and Dingo Beach. On a day when the colours of the south coast were particularly stunning, the tragedy that unfolded seemed at odds with the scene. Mr Pinchen’s wife, Anne, said her husband of 32 years had made “a spectacular exit”. “We’re so blessed in this part of the world, truly,” Ms Pinchen said. “What a beautiful place to be and doing the thing he loved. “We’re both Christians, and I don’t believe this is the end. “He’s gone out in spectacular fashion and I will meet him again, I’m sure of that.” Ms Pinchen said she appreciated the outpouring of support and love from the community in the wake of her husband’s death. “For someone who was a humble man, he’s made quite a scene,” she said. Flying with Mr Pinchen that day, as usual, was his close friend and flying buddy, Peter Hardy-Atkins, 78. Mr Hardy-Atkins said his friend had taken up paragliding about four years ago. Shelley Beach is a registered flying site with the Hang Gliding Federation of Australia, with designated take-off and landing zones. “This was a great adventure in his later years,” he said. “Old people coming to this sport have to work very hard. You can never be sure about variations in the weather. “After hot-air ballooning and launching rockets into space, this would be the most weather -critical aviation event that you could possibly imagine.” He described Mr Pinchen as “a beautiful man”. “He had a warm sense of humour, a generous nature,” he said. “I know the day will come when I fly and I don’t automatically think of Wilf, but that will be a little while away from here.”