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SALT LAKE CITY (AP) -- The pilot of a paraglider made a wrong turn, crashing his aircraft into side of a mountain.
Allan Thulin, 42, of Las Vegas, crashed his unpowered paraglider at Point of the Mountain on Saturday. He was flown to University Hospital with severe back pain, said Utah County sheriff's Deputy Aaron Zimmer.
His condition was not available Sunday.
Thulin, who is certified to fly a paraglider but has little experience, accidentally turned into the mountainside instead of away from it after about an hour in the air, said Steve Mayer of Cloud 9 Soaring Center in Draper.
"This pilot was not too familiar with our site. He turned left when he should have turned right," said Mayer, who witnessed the accident.
Nearby pilots rushed to Thulin's aide. A helicopter was called to spare him a bumpy ambulance ride down the mountain with a back injury.
(Copyright 2003 by The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.)
