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Skywings On-line Magazine

Skywings news stories are available for the following publication years:

If you're looking for news stories published before January 2016, please visit the Skywings News Archive.

Skywings news stories published in 2022 are displayed below.

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There are 31 news stories for 2022 in our database.

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Skywings News - 2022

BHPA Office & Shop

The BHPA office will close for Christmas at 12pm on Friday 23rd December and will reopen at 8.30am Tuesday 3rd January.

Whilst our online shop will remain open over the Christmas break, any orders placed whilst the office is closed for Christmas will not be processed or goods despatched until the office opens again on the 3 January 2023.

Posted: 13 December 2022
By: Paul Dancey

New Sports Class racing series

Airtribune's Brett JanawayAn new paragliding competition series is coming, led by Airtribune's Brett Janaway. The Sports-Class Racing Series (SRS) is aimed at all competitive pilots except those who fly EN D and CCC gliders.

Among the features of the new series are a new, transparent scoring formula, faster scoring systems, the latest generation of trackers, and top-notch PR.

An annual Sports Class Champion will emerge after four or five competitive FAI Category 2 events between May and September. This year's four venues are all well-proven sites for challenging but achievable tasks. Each comp is free-standing; pilots do not have to attend them all. The series is supported by some of the sport's leading names including Ozone, XCMag, Flymaster and Naviter.

The organising team includes some equally-formidable names. Brett (pictured) has been organising competitions and events for 20 years and has developed the Airtribune network; his company FlyEvent rents trackers to paragliding events worldwide. Charles Norwood, dynamo chairman of British Paragliding Comps; Nicole Fedele, PWC and World Championship veteran, test pilot and record breaker; former PWCA scoring-systems genius Chris Trow and seasoned event administrator Magdalena Janaway represent serious firepower.

Would-be SRS entrants should note that you don't have to fly an EN C 2-liner. Pilots flying all kinds of EN A, B and C wings are encouraged to enter. The 2023 schedule is: May 7-13 (Kruševo), June 3-9 (St Jean Montclar), July 16-23 (Gemona) and September 10-16 (Pedro Bernardo).

Full details are available on the Sports-Class Racing Series website. Registration will open on Airtribune on December 1st.

Posted: 29 November 2022
By: J. Schofield

GBAR 2 is on!

The second Great British Aerotow Revival eventThe second Great British Aerotow Revival event is on.

The competition will return to Deenethorpe airfield near Corby from May 13th-20th. For those who want to hone their skills and/or sample the site, set-up and practice days will be May 10th-12th.

Places will be strictly limited by the number of tugs available. Currently there are five tugs booked; competition places will be limited to 50 pilots across Class 1, Sport and Class 5.

Registration opens on December 15th - to avoid disappointment confirm your place by registering via the Airtribune Website.

[Photo by: Katy Tracey]

Posted: 29 November 2022
By: J. Schofield

BP Cup news

The very organised British Paragliding Cup team plans two rounds in 2023 including an overseas leg. There will be a UK Round in the Yorkshire Dales from Thursday 20th - Sunday 23rd April (registration: Wednesday 19th), and a European Round at Sopot in Bulgaria from Sunday 27th August to Saturday 2nd September (registration: Saturday 26th). Details are here. Put these dates in your diary now!

Posted: 29 November 2022
By: J. Schofield

BHPA Office Closed Monday 19 September

Out of respect for the late Queen, the BHPA Office will be closed on Monday 19 September 2022. We will reopen as usual at 8.30 on Tuesday 20 September 2022.

Posted: 13 September 2022
By: Paul Dancey

British Hang Gliding & Paragliding Association

Queen Elizabeth IIAs a member Association of the Royal Aero Club, we join with the RAeC Chairman, David Monks, in expressing our sadness at the loss of a great monarch.

The Royal Aero Club of the United Kingdom

The Royal Aero Club of the United Kingdom would like to express great sadness at the passing of our Patron, Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II. Our thoughts remain with the Royal Family at this very sad time.

David Monks Chairman

Posted: 8 September 2022
By: Paul Dancey

Afghan woman paraglider needs help

An Afghan female paraglider pilot, who flew for her country at the 2018 Asian games, has been in hiding since the fall of Kabul last year. From soaring the skies above Kabul she is now trapped in her house.

The 28-year-old, whose name we are unable to reveal, has been in regular touch with US journalist Erica Berenstein and other supportive friends since the fall of Kabul in August 2021. Together they have made plans to get the pilot and her sister, who suffers from glaucoma, out of the country.

This will involve assistance from NGOs and lawyers and financial help will be necessary. A Go Fund Me page has already achieved more than 10% of their target.

Please help if you can by donating here. No amount is too small.

Posted: 5 September 2022
By: J. Schofield

Safety Notice PG harness with zip rescue container

rescue container zip in its zip garageThe DHV has issued a safety notice to highlight a potential deployment issue for paraglider harnesses that use a zip closure system for the parachute doors and bridle routing, instead of hook and loop closure.

To ensure proper reserve deployment, it is essential that the slide of the rescue container zip is in its "zip garage". If the slide is not in its "garage" and the zip has partly opened, this could have serious consequences due to the reserve release being hindered or completely blocked.

For further information please use the following link to view the full safety notice on the DHV website:

DHV-Safety notice Paraglider harnesses with zip rescue container 8/2022

Posted: 5 September 2022
By: Paul Dancey

last updated: 31 January 2025

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