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Displaying page 11 out of 53
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This annual week-long gathering represents the state of the art in human-powered flying. The niche discipline has gained momentum over the last year and progress in the field is expected.
Southampton University's Lazarus reappeared last year to secured the RAeS Formula Flight prize; it has since been rebuilt and flown in yet another new guise, and David Barford's Betterfly is also expected to return to the fray.
There has also been activity in the Aerocyle camp (pictured), and there may be entirely new entries from further afield.
The early-morning event at Lasham is shaping up to be a breakthrough this year as HPAs slowly move forward to greater achievements.
Marshalls are required to assist with the running of the event; if you're interested in witnessing - and assisting - the evolution of human-powered flight, contact Tony Prentice at tony.prentice1@btinternet.com.
For further information please visit the British Human Powered Flying Club website.
Posted: 8 July 2022
By: J. Schofield
The 109th Tour de France takes place between July 1st - July 24th 2022, with 21 stages all around France, in a large variety of landscapes.
As in previous years, the race will be overflown by aircraft flying at different altitudes and temporary restricted areas (TRA) will be in place in mountain areas.
The CNFAS strongly recommend that pilots visiting France during this period avoid flying over stages of the Tour de France, and respect mandatory air rules and conditions of airspace penetration published in Notams, AIC or AIP SUP.
The full CNFAS Circular is available for download using the following link:
Posted: 1 July 2022
By: Paul Dancey
The Royal Aero Club awards ceremony took place at the RAF Club, Piccadilly, in May. Chief among the awards to BHPA members were Russ Ogden's richly-deserved RAeC Gold Medal, and the British Paragliding Team's equally well-earned Prince of Wales Cup.
Actually in attendance on the day were Russ, Jocky Sanderson, Seb Ospina and Martin Long, plus Mike Chilvers (Ann Welch Memorial Award) and Glenn Stockton (RAeC Certificate of Merit).
Also present to support our chaps were Comps supremo Jenny Buck and BHPA Chairman Marc Asquith. Congratulations to all who were involved in these goings-on. Trophies and awards were presented by Robert Courts MP, Minister for Aviation.
Posted: 5 June 2022
By: J. Schofield
The BHPFCs Icarus Cup takes place at Lasham airfield in Hampshire from July 23rd-31st. This annual week-long gathering represents the state of the art in human-powered flying.
The niche discipline has gained momentum in the last year and progress in the field is expected. Last year Southampton University's Lazarus secured the RAeS Formula Flight prize; it has since been rebuilt and flown in a new form, and David Barford's Betterfly (pictured) is also expected to return to the fray. There has been activity in the Aerocyle camp, and there may be entirely new entries from further afield.
Marshalls are required to assist with the running of the event; if you're interested in witnessing - and assisting - the evolution of human-powered flight, contact Tony Prentice. There's more information at the BHPFC website.
Posted: 5 June 2022
By: J. Schofield
A large military aircraft flypast will celebrate HMQ's Platinum Jubilee on June 2nd 2022. Widespread restrictions covering south and central England are outlined here.
Posted: 16 May 2022
By: J. Schofield
The FAI paramotor world championships ended on April 30th at Saquarema, Brazil, with France taking team Gold ahead of Brazil and Quatar.
After eight tasks and only one cancellation, Italy's six-times national champion Pasquale Biondo emerged as individual PF1 world champion from French teamsters Cyril Planton and Jean-Emile Oulha.
France's Boris Tysebaert secured the trike class having won five of their nine tasks outright. The British contingent took 8th place, led by Dan Jones in 28th spot with Joe Womersley 33rd and Nigel Cosbie-Ross 36th.
Posted: 11 May 2022
By: J. Schofield
Update 21 of the BHPA Technical Manual has now been published.
This latest update of the BHPA Technical Manual is available for download in the documents section of our website, and supersedes Update 20.
Posted: 7 April 2022
By: Paul Dancey
Armin Harich, Jean-Baptiste Chandelier and Benni Bölli have come up with the Moustache. It looks like a conventional paraglider but has a reflex profile and is controlled more like a kite. Using pulleys to mix the B and C risers in proportion to brake travel allows the pilot to change the angle of attack at will.
Hands up you go fast with a steep glide angle; hands down you slow down and glide increases. Aimed at sand, snow, coastal soaring and speed flying, the Moustache, is ideal for swooping too. It converts energy from dives into turns or height in a more dynamic and efficient way than a paraglider.
Not designed for thermalling, the Moustache requires a different skill set compared to a standard paraglider. Its designers say it's like a mid-B wing, with the bigger sizes optimised for soaring and the smaller sizes for speedriding. The size you choose also depends on pilot weight and skill level.
Its roots are in Armin Harich's long history in foil kites, culminating in a one-liner that captured world and European foil racing titles. After years of development the team were able to reduce the steering forces to 'less than those of a tandem'.
The new wing is very resistant to collapse, but it still needs careful handling and will misbehave if the pilot reacts to deflation by going hands-up.
The Moustache is produced by Flare, a new offshoot of Skywalk. Armin Harich believes that one day all paragliders will end up being controlled in this way, and that it has the potential to revolutionise the sport. There's a series of videos explaining all this on the Flare website.
Posted: 1 April 2022
By: J. Schofield
last updated: 2 July 2025
Displaying page 11 out of 53
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