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Incident Reports (Informal)

Incident reports received by the BHPA are available in summary form on this page. If you're looking for reports of formal investigations undertaken in the case of a serious incident, please visit our Incident Reports (formal investigations) page.

Hang Glider (Courtesy Mike Scholes)

Incident reports are available in summary form for the following wing types:

Incident reports for all wing types are displayed below in summary form.

The BHPA incident reports database is fully searchable. To refine your search you can specify a particular wing type and select "or" or "and". For example, if you want to search for paraglider incidents at Hay Bluff, for best search results select paraglider from the drop down list and the "and" option.

If you want to search by incident date, please enter the day, month and year numerically as dd-mm-yyyy (eg. 03-12-2019).

or and

If known, total hours and total flights flown are displayed below together with hours and flights flown in the past six months, the latter being displayed in brackets.

There are 3234 entries for all wing types

Displaying page 5 out of 324

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Date Pilot Location Wing Type Summary Injury
Incident Reports

Date
08.07.2024

Pilot
Unknown
Location
N/A,
N/A,
UK

Wing Type
Paraglider

Wing:
Ozone
Photon

Summary
The paraglider with less than 100hrs use was inspected by a service centre which reported multiple small tears to the leading edge material over the locations of stiffening rods. Further investigation revealed that this was likely to be due to abrasion of the leading edge over certain ground surfaces.

Injury
Pilot:
Unhurt

Date
04.07.2024

Pilot
Unknown
Location
N/A,
UK

Wing Type
Paraglider

Wing:
Nova
Mentor 7 Light

Summary
During a routine service, the service centre noted a metal connector (unbranded "Maillon" type) between riser and lines had two or three turns of thread visible below the closing nut (when closed). Upon further examination it was evident that the nut could be wound fully up the top thread with little resistance, fully exposing the bottom thread and therefore opening the connector.

Injury
Pilot:
Unhurt

Date
03.07.2024

Pilot
Male

Age:
32

Rating:
P

Flying Experience:
2 years

50 hours
(3 hours)

150 flights
(10 flights)

Location
Buljarica,
Čanj,
Montenegro

Wind Strength:
15-20 km/h

Conditions:
Calm,
Moderate Turbulence

Wing Type
Paraglider

Wing:
Nova
Mentor 7

Launch Type:
Foot

Summary
The pilot chose to land in a field other than the designated landing field, selecting a field with a small hill at its upwind end. They approached the upwind end of the landing field and became aware of turbulence in the lee of the hill. The pilot opted to make a 360 degree turn and lost height rapidly in the turn. They hit the ground during the downwind part of the turn and sustained injury.

Injury
Pilot:
Seriously Injured,

Feet, Legs

Date
30.06.2024

Pilot
Male

Age:
58

Rating:
P

Flying Experience:
25 years

1100 hours
(50 hours)

1000 flights
(25 flights)

Location
Kobala,
Tolmin,
Slovenia

Wind Strength:
5-10 km/h

Conditions:
Moderate,
Not Turbulent

Wing Type
Paraglider

Wing:
Ozone
Alpina 3

Launch Type:
Foot

Summary
The pilot mistimed their landing flare, causing the wing to climb and then stall, dropping the pilot to the ground where they sustained injury.

Injury
Pilot:
Seriously Injured,

Feet, Legs

Date
29.06.2024

Pilot
Male

Age:
69

Rating:
P

Flying Experience:
31 years

556 hours

76 flights
(17 flights)

Location
Long Mynd,
Shropshire,
UK

Wind Strength:
10-15 km/h

Conditions:
Moderate,
Not Turbulent

Wing Type
Flexwing Hang Glider

Wing:
Wills Wing
U2

Launch Type:
Foot

Summary
The pilot misjudged the landing approach and considered they may overshoot the landing field. They landed heavily in the flare, sustaining injury and damage to the glider.

Injury
Pilot:
Minor Injuries,

Hands, Arms, Shoulder

Passenger:
Minor Injuries

Date
26.06.2024

Pilot
Male

Age:
43

Rating:
P

Flying Experience:
8 years

36 hours
(12 hours)

175 flights
(38 flights)

Location
Rushup Edge,
Hope Valley, Peak District,
UK

Wind Strength:
15-20 km/h

Conditions:
Moderate,
Moderate Turbulence

Wing Type
Paraglider

Wing:
BGD
Epic

Launch Type:
Foot

Summary
The pilot took action to deconflict with another paraglider on final approach to land, and clipped the top of a dry stone wall.

Injury
Pilot:
Unhurt

Date
25.06.2024

Pilot
Male

Rating:
Unknown

Flying Experience:
1 year


Location
Landsdown,
Bath,
UK

Wind Strength:
5-10 km/h

Conditions:,
Not Turbulent

Wing Type
Powered PG

Wing:
Dudek
Solo

Launch Type:
Powered

Engine:
Bulldog,
Moster 185

Summary
The pilot lost control of their powered paraglider after entering a spiral dive over the landing field. They impacted the ground, sustaining injury.

Injury
Pilot:
Seriously Injured

Date
24.06.2024

Pilot
Male

Age:
62

Rating:
CP

Location
Nont Sarahs,
Huddersfield,
UK

Wind Strength:
10-15 km/h

Conditions:
Calm,
Light Turbulence

Wing Type
Paraglider

Wing:
Nova
Mentor 7 light

Launch Type:
Foot

Summary
The pilot collided with rocks whilst soaring in light winds. The impact was seen to be on the base of the harness. The pilot cited distraction due to altering harness settings in flight.

Injury
Pilot:
Seriously Injured,

Lumbar Spine

Date
23.06.2024

Pilot
Male

Age:
27

Rating:
CP

Flying Experience:
3 years

6 hours
(6 hours)

40 flights
(40 flights)

Location
Bradwell Edge,
Derbyshire,
UK

Wing Type
Paraglider

Wing:
Gin
Bolero 4

Launch Type:
Foot

Summary
The pilot launched in sinking air and initially was able to steer around ground obstacles before colliding with a large tree.

Injury
Pilot:
Unhurt

Passenger:
Unhurt

Date
22.06.2024

Pilot
Female

Age:
64

Rating:
CP

Flying Experience:
3 years

22 hours
(4 hours)

62 flights
(10 flights)

Location
Latrigg,
Keswick, Cumbria,
UK

Wind Strength:
30-35 km/h

Conditions:
Calm,
Moderate Turbulence

Wing Type
Paraglider

Wing:
Air Design
Eazy 2 S/L

Launch Type:
Foot

Summary
The pilot took action to counter a frontal collapse on final approach to land. The paraglider turned sharply to the left, the canopy settling over a large tree. The pilot was suspended in the lower branches and was recovered by the Fire Brigade.

Injury
Pilot:
Unhurt

Last updated: 2 December 2024

Displaying page 5 out of 324

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A number of incident analysis reports are also available in the safety section of our website. These are compiled from the individual incident reports submitted during the course of each year.

 

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