No. 360 APRIL 2019The magazine of the British Hang Gliding and Paragliding Association2 SKYWINGS APR 2019 THE BHPA LTD 8 Merus Court, Meridian Business Park,Leicester LE19 1RJ. Tel: 0116 289 4316.Skywings magazine is published monthly by the British HangGliding and Paragliding Association Ltd to inform, educate andentertain those in the sports of Paragliding and Hang Gliding.The views expressed in this magazine are not necessarilythose of the British Hang Gliding and Paragliding Association,their Council, Officers or Editor. The Editor and publisher acceptno responsibility for any supposed defects in the goods,services and practices represented or advertised in thismagazine. The Editor reserves the right to edit contributions.ISSN 0951-5712SUBSCRIPTIONS AND DELIVERY ENQUIRIES Tel: 0116 289 4316, e-mail: Online: THE EDITOR Joe Schofield, 39 London Road, Harleston, NorfolkIP20 9BH. Tel: 01379 855021. E-mail: COVER PHOTO World 3-turnpoints distance record holder andPWC Superfinal winner Michi Sigel aboard Gin’s Bonanza 2 atFiesch in Switzerland Photo: Jerome MaupointTHIS PAGE Advance’s Valéry Chapuis and Simon Campicheaboard a pair of Alpha 6s above Switzerland’s Lake Brienz –see flight test on page 30 Photo: © Thomas UlrichDESIGN & PRODUCTION Fargher Design Ltd. Killane House,Ballaugh, Isle of Man, IM7 5BD.PRINT & DISTRIBUTION Newman Thomson Ltd, One Jubilee Rd,Victoria Ind. Est, Burgess Hill, RH15 9TL.ADVERTISING Tel: 07624 413737 Email: Online: SKYWINGS ONLINE Go For theApril issue enter the username Apr_2019 and the case-sensitivepassword S6dBq7F?For the May issue enter the username May_2019 and the case-sensitive password C2Ni6G$pDEADLINES News items and event/competition reports for theJune 2019 issue must be submitted to the Skywings office byFriday May 3rd. Letters for the May Airmail page should arrive nolater than Wednesday April 17th. Advertisement bookings for theMay edition of Skywings must arrive by Thursday April 11th. Copyand classified bookings no later than Thursday April 18th. regulars reviews features attitude4 SKYWINGS APR 2019The NOTAM was a complete misrepresentation of the likelyactivity, which could have taken place anywhere within the LakeDistrict and, with decent XC conditions, well outside a 2nm radius.The problem was that Ian had submitted a CANP to the LowFlying Booking Flight, which was then translated by the CAA intoa NOTAM. The CANP currently limits hang glider and paraglidingactivity to a 2nm radius and a ceiling of 2,000ft AGL. AvidSkywings readers will know that I am trying to address theshortfalls of CANP, but I can’t report much progress to date.But we’ve all seen NOTAMs for sailplane (and paramotor)competitions covering much bigger areas. If you want to publisha NOTAM for a competition, the process, is to email: They will send you a fairly short form tocomplete (just 12 fields) and return at least seven days before thecompetitions starts. Here’s a sample that I generated …When you submit the form you won’t know which sites you’ll beusing or what routes will be set, so it’s important to provide eithera website URL or a phone number non-participants can use toenquire about the day’s activity.The process is surprisingly effective. From my test submissionthe CAA system generated a draft NOTAM containing all therelevant information including the much wider operating areathan a CANP Notification would have provided … NOTAM PROPOSAL EGNN A) EGTT B) 1902221100 C) 1902241800 D) 1100 - 1800 E) PARAGLIDING COMPETITION. UP TO 50 PARAGLIDERS WILL OPRFROM SITES WI 30NM OF LAT/LONG. PARAGLIDERS MAY FLY OUTOF THE AREA (DOWNWIND). SITES WILL CHANGE ON A DAILYBASIS. FOR INFO ON SITES AND ROUTES WWW.DHPC.ORG.UK FROM1000 DAILY OR 07568 574640. 2019-02-0154/AS3F) SFC G) 6000FT AMSL[4-letter codes are ICAO airfield codes. In our case it should be therelevant Flight Information Region: EGTT for the London FIR, EGPXfor the Scottish FIR, EGNN for Preston Air Traffic Control Centre.]Geographic locations can be submitted as OS grid references (orlat/long); the CAA system will translate them into lat/long forother aviators.If you seek to protect a large number of pilots operating in awide area away from a specific site, generating a NOTAM usingthe CAA form is a much better method than submitting thewarning via CANP. Just note that you need to do this more thanseven days ahead of the proposed activity.Photo: Ian Carstairs/Clancy PammetCompetition NOTAMs - another wayMARTIN BAXTER, BHPA SITES OFFICER Last year Ian Henderson of the Cumbria Soaring Club told me a story about the Lakes Charity Classic. A pilotfrom RAF Valley had phoned him – on a Sunday! – to say that they had seen his NOTAM and were wondering howhe could possibly squeeze 100 paragliders into a circle with a radius of 2nm. I suspect that we could … but that’snot really the point.New stock arrives at Turfhouse every month, but noteverything is new! In March my collection of usedgliders was enhanced by this superb beginner’s hangglider, a Sting 2 XC at £1295. Paragliders? I’ve alsotaken in a super medium Firebird Spider – one of my all-time favourite wings at £450.This Suppair Evo XCharness is inexceptionalcondition, and at£125 would be agreat first-timeharness! Lets notget hung up on itthough – I have lotsmore to choosefrom:Fun need not cost afortune. Dune-goonerslike their basicharnesses, and I havestirrup and knee-hangersfrom £70.This large hanggliding reserve is arare MetamorfosiConar 20 floatingdown at £295, but Ihave other cheaperreserves, and forparagliding, too!What a carry-on! I’ve gotused rucksacks, too –from £70.This as-new RenschlerCoMo OLC is £299, but myother used GPS varios arean Ascent and aFlymaster GPS SD, withmore basic varios fromBrauniger, Flytec andRenschler.Having the magnificent Charly range of crash helmetsto choose from, I don’t normally reckon to sell usedhelmets, but I’m a head-case, so if something unusualturns up at the right If you are on mywavelength you’llknow that I sell lotsof new radios, butalso have Yaesu,Alinco, Boafeng andMagiksun availablesecondhand. From£10 and up!My Zoot headsets,radios andaccessories arejustifiablyrenowned forquality and value,but some usedradios and helmetscome completewith headsets too!I keep afloat bystocking unusual stuffat Turfhouse. Howabout a hardly usedSeago self-inflatinglife jacket? Save apacket over new price!New Arrivals!Charly HelmetsThe aerodynamicCharly NO Limits isavailable as anopen - or a full-facehelmet. Thepressure-formedaerodynamic Kevlar-reinforced fibreglassshells are renowned for their quietness, and come in fourcolours and four sizes,starting at £225. A clearvisor comes asstandard with optionalTinted visors available. The Charly Insider isprobably the top-sellingfree flight helmet of all time. The Kevlar-reinforced fibreglassshell is fully-lined, and I stock eleven colours and six sizesfrom XS to XXL! Pricesstart at £158, andweight is only660gm!The stylish CharlyLoop costs £120,weighs around 505gmand comes with a helmet bag included. There are threesizes and six colours:Gloss White, Matt Blue,Matt Black, Matt Red,Matt Orange and NovaSilver – see them all onmy website:The Charly Ace has a polycarbonate shell and comes in foursizes, with a choice of Gloss White, Matt Red, Matt Black orCarbon-look. Weight isaround 560gm, andprices start at £84.The Charly Breeze hasa swoopypolycarbonate shell,comes in four sizes ineither White or MattBlack - with contrastingremovable ear coversto suit differentseasons. There is alsoa version in twoadjustable sizes forcommercial operators schools andtandem. It weighs about 480gm,and costs £87.I stock all the Charly helmetsoptional accessories, too! The Ace,Breeze and Loop will all accept theoptional visor, available in Grey,Yellow, Orange and Mirror finishes.Prices start at £28 per visor, withthe fixing screw set costinganother £6. tel:01404 891685 email: Turfhouse, Luppitt, Honiton, Devon, EX14 4SA 6 SKYWINGS APR 2019newsThe Last GlaciersA few years ago filmmaker Craig Leesonand Malcolm Wood – of LevelWings’ parentSteelhead Group – released a film raisingawareness about the problems single-useplastics cause to the environment.Screened in more than 60 countries andtranslated into more than 20 languages,and supported by environmentalists suchas Sir David Attenborough, A Plastic Oceanhelped change government, business andUN environmental policies and garneredmany documentary awards.The same team is now working to bringa similar awareness to climate change.Mounting evidence of global warming hasgalvanised scientists yet still bringsheated debate among politicians and thepublic. In a bid to represent visually thechanges taking place, The Last Glaciersfollows a group of paragliders and extremespeedwing pilots as they accesspreviously-impossible filmingopportunities to highlight climate change.Through the eyes of scientists the teamlooks at how glaciers reveal the story ofpast climate change and how mankind isaffecting the future.As glaciers melt at accelerating ratesdue to increasing temperatures, millionsof people are at risk of natural disasterssuch as floods, droughts and landslides.Communities face uncertain futures as therelationship between earth, water and ourchanging climate impacts ecosystems,agriculture, water systems, infrastructureand human health. The film’s message is awake-up call; what the team discovers onits journey is ‘beyond shocking’ – see Ifpoliticians do not start prioritising climatechange we will not be able to reverse thedamage done; the very life supportsystems we all rely on for daily survivalare already beginning to collapse. If wedon’t address global warming now … wewill not survive the changes that willoccur on earth.Jack Pimblett joinsAdvance TeamBritish acro star and all-rounder JackPimblett (top) has been invited to becomean Advance Team pilot. Flying from ayoung age, Jack finished 7th at the 2018Acro World Tour final. He joins fellowAdvance neophyte Victor ‘Bicho’ Carrera(lower), the Chilean acro and professionaltandem pilot who finished two placesabove him at the World Tour final.New logo voteddownAt the BHPA AGM in March, a proposalfrom the floor that the Association adopt anew corporate identity more in keepingwith its make-up was defeated by a narrowmargin. A number of paraglider pilots,unhappy with the precedence of ‘hanggliding’ before ‘paragliding’ in the BHPA’sname, proposed that the Association berenamed the British Paragliding and HangGliding Association. A graphic designeramong their number had come up with anew Association logo to reflect the change.Following a highly-charged discussion, atwhich the originating members protestedthat, as hang gliding was substantiallyoutnumbered by paragliding among theBHPA’s 7,500-odd members it was now timeto re-orient the Association towards itscore discipline. Amid sustained acrimonyfrom both sides, during which onemember even claimed that the logobelonged to a Bedfordshire housingassociation, a vote was taken and theproposal to change the BHPA’s name andlogo was defeated. Despite their evidentdesign expertise, supporters of the ‘BPHA’will have to bow to the democraticprinciple and lick their wounds … for now.Richard ArklelegacyThe BHPA Hang Gliding Comps Panelreports that they have received a generouslegacy from the family of longtime hangglider pilot and Aberdeen club memberRichard Arkle. Richard, who died in in 2013,was an accomplished pilot and adventurerto remote places. His last trip was to Aspres,France in 2011 with Mike Armstrong, DonaldMacKenzie, Stewart Bond and MarcusDalgetty for aerotow training; like manyhangies he graduated to gliding in lateryears. The bequest will be used, as thefamily have asked, to promote and assistup-and-coming competition pilots, a fineway to mark and remember his passing.news8 SKYWINGS APR 2019APPG-GA reaches200 membersIn late February the All-PartyParliamentary Group on General Aviation(APPG-GA) was joined by its 200th member.Since its founding in 2017 the APPG-GA, ledby private pilot Grant Schapps, has drawncross-party support from both Houses andhas now become the largest such groupingin Parliament. The group aims to ensurethat an otherwise-preoccupied governmentmaintains its promise to be ‘the best placein the world for GA’.Six working groups, each chaired by aParliamentarian with an interest in theirarea, cover airfields, airspace, tax andregulations, heritage, STEM jobs/skills andmanufacturing/engineering. The Group hasalso received backing from LondonHeathrow Airport, EasyJet and Boeing,although it’s not immediately clear whereany of their claimed interests in GA lie.Neither is it clear whether nearly a third ofMPs are GA enthusiasts, or simply thatmany local businesses have prevailedupon their representatives to sign up.Either way it indicates the wide-rangingpenetration of GA interests into the fabricof UK industry. To see if your MP is amember go toMoyes China tripMoyes are inviting hang glider pilots tojoin them in flying the high country ofInner Mongolia in June. The plan is toassemble at Guyuan, four hours north-westof Beijing, on June 6th, have a couple ofdays’ practice and then embark on acompetition from June 9th - 15th. Pilots willneed a glider and harness, an aerotowrating, a tow release and bridle, a recently-repacked parachute and a GPS. The entryfee is US$150, the aerotow/site fee isUS$440, and a retrieve service is availableat US$150 daily. Accommodation, gliderrental and transport from Beijing can alsobe arranged. To register your interest e-mail Vicki at Speed flyingtraining abroadSunsoar Paragliding will be running aspeed flying progression week for qualifiedBHPA speed flying pilots in the French Alpsfrom July 21st - 28th. Daily multiple high-mountain descents will be possible, withcable-car access back to take-off.Accommodation will be in a self-cateringchalet near Morzine. The trip is also opento qualified paraglider pilots with a freespeed flying conversion course included inthe price. Further details are atAnother FirstFlighterCongratulations from CFI Bertie Kennedyto Paul Cunningham, yet another pilot whohas persevered through Northern Ireland’sunreliable weather to achieve CP Novicerating at First Flight Paragliding. Paul, wholives just 15 minutes away from one ofUlster’s prime westerly sites, is nowlooking forward to a lot more airtime.In briefIcarus Cup. This year’s BHPFC human-powered aircraft competition will be heldat Lasham from July 20th - 28th. TheIcarus Cup is without doubt the foremosthuman-power flying event anywhere inthe world today. Any volunteers interestedin helping to marshal the event over theweek should contact Tony Prentice 01474706405 (onsite camping is available).The RAeS will shortly announce a newcompetition aimed at first-time HPAbuilders and flyers, to encourage newentrants to the human-powered flyingworld. More details here soon.BHPA subs increase. All members arereminded (see January Attitude andFebruary News) that all BHPA subscriptionsare increased as of April 1st, following avery serious claim on the Association’sinsurance and the subsequent dramaticincrease in our premium. Every effort hasbeen made to keep the increases to theminimum necessary. Neverthelessmembers are encouraged to keep theirown flying risks as low as possible; afurther rise in premiums occasioned byanother serious accident could becatastrophic. Details of the new rates areon page 17 of this issue.Rob Whittall height-gain record tumbles.The FAI world record for gain of height ona paraglider was broken in February byAntoine Girard. In the vicinity ofAconcagua, Argentina – the highestmountain in the southern hemisphere –Antoine climbed 5,700m on a lightweightOzone LM6, eclipsing Rob Whittall’s recordof 4,526m set on a prototype FirebirdNavajo in South Africa’s Karoo region … 25years ago!World distance record. Michael Sigel’s 551kmparaglider flight in Brazil last December hasbeen ratified as a world record free distanceusing up to 3 turnpoints. [See cover photo.] World goal record. Jouni Makkonen’sclaim to the world paragliding distance-to-goal record has been ratified. On October11th last year Jouni flew 479.4km fromCaicó aboard an Ozone Enzo 3 to beatVagner Campos’ 2017 straight-distance-to-goal record of 451km.Skywings online. The online version ofthis (April) issue of the magazine can befound at Enterthe username Apr_2019 and the case-sensitive password S6dBq7F?. For the Mayissue enter the username May_2019 andthe case-sensitive password C2Ni6G$p.These details can also be found on thecontents page of each issue. Magazineswith a cover date over six months old canbe viewed online or downloaded withoutthe need to log in.BHPA 500 ClubWIN CASH PRIZES AND HELP THEASSOCIATION! February winnersAndrew Stirzaker £133.00Bryan Hindle £66.50Hugh Burnaby-Atkins £33.25Gary Williamson £19.95Robert Clarke £16.63Nick Warren £16.63Liam Brazil £13.30John Edwards £13.30Andrew Hill £9.98Anne Breckenridge £9.98BHPA £332.48If by the time you read this you havenot received your cheque, please contactme on 07802 525099.Marc Asquith vice, outstanding sert advice, experop brandso T yered delivrackrWIDEWEUR01273 812 442OPE-T o fo h d fl i indecasting app! Forfeatheree ww frneCheck out our ’ , e thereawom/.cflybubblethe good flying on: , , P f rour successocused on yF Vet the one that ts yGy smanoc e stWHELME ou! e one that ts y. es and colours siz, in nsy desigck manSTS & HEADSETENext >