Paramotor
British Hang Gliding and Paragliding Association logo

British Hang Gliding and Paragliding Association

safety
incidents
reports

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.

Paraglider pilot getting ready to take off from Fochriw

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 3287 entries for all wing types

Displaying page 80 out of 329

[ Top ] - [ Prev ] - [ Next ] - [ Bottom ]

Date Pilot Location Wing Type Summary Injury
Incident Reports

Date
20.03.2019

Pilot
Male

Age:
59

Rating:
P

Flying Experience:
35 years

1000 hours
(25 hours)

1000 flights
(50 flights)

Location
Merthyr Common,
Merthyr Tydfil,
UK

Wind Strength:
25-30 km/h

Conditions:
Calm,
Not Turbulent

Wing Type
Paraglider

Wing:
Nova
Bion

Launch Type:
Foot

Summary
Pilot launched tandem in windy conditions and was immediately lifted off with passenger. Pilot could not see as passenger harness had become stuck over the Quick-Out karabiners obscuring the pilot's vision. Pilot was able to land after a short beat but fell on passenger on landing.

Injury
Pilot:
Unhurt

Passenger:
Minor Injuries

Date
19.03.2019

Pilot
Male

Age:
51

Rating:
P

Flying Experience:
19 years

739 hours
(101 hours)

2000 flights
(134 flights)

Location
Legzira,
Morocco

Wind Strength:
5-10 km/h

Conditions:
Calm,
Not Turbulent

Wing Type
Paraglider

Wing:
Ozone
Magnum 2

Launch Type:
Foot

Summary
Pilot under training overshot intended top landing by approx 10m. Pilot stumbled on rocky terrain, resulting fall and drag 2m approx. Pilot not wearing gloves, sustained small (2cm), shallow cut to right hand.

Injury
Pilot:
Minor Injuries,

Hands, Arms, Shoulder

Passenger:
Unhurt

Date
18.03.2019

Pilot
Male

Age:
46

Rating:
P

Flying Experience:
17 years

300 hours
(17 hours)

1500 flights
(14 flights)

Location
Devil's Dyke,
Brighton,
UK

Wind Strength:
10-15 km/h

Conditions:
Calm,
Light Turbulence,
Front Influence

Wing Type
Paraglider

Wing:
Niviuk
Artik 4

Launch Type:
Foot

Summary
Pilot took off in deteriorating conditions with rain beginning to fall. In his haste to get down the pilot initiated big ears but then stalled one side of the glider on releasing the ears. Glider then entered a spin and the pilot landed heavily.

Injury
Pilot:
Seriously Injured

Date
14.03.2019

Pilot
Male

Age:
46

Rating:
CP

Flying Experience:
7 years

27 hours
(9 hours)

66 flights
(20 flights)

Location
Montellano,
Montellano,
Spain

Wind Strength:
10-15 km/h

Conditions:
Moderate,
Moderate Turbulence

Wing Type
Paraglider

Wing:
Advance
Xi

Launch Type:
Foot

Summary
Pilot was flying friends wing and suffered an asymmetric collapse while thermalling. Due to lack of ground clearance pilot successfully deployed his emergency parachute and landed safely.

Injury
Pilot:
Unhurt

Date
04.03.2019

Pilot
Male

Age:
69

Rating:
CP

Flying Experience:
13 years

50 hours

Location
Bornos lake,
Bornos,
Spain

Wind Strength:
10-15 km/h

Conditions:
Calm,
Not Turbulent

Wing Type
Powered PG

Wing:
Gin
Pegasus

Launch Type:
Powered

Engine:
Miniplane,
Top80

Summary
Student lost control while practising 'launch abort' with motor running. Student attempted to collapse wing but in doing so applied full power to the motor. Student was pushed over by the thrust and was cut on sharp stone.

Injury
Pilot:
Seriously Injured,

Hands, Arms, Shoulder

Date
02.03.2019

Pilot
Male

Age:
26

Rating:
CP

Flying Experience:
8 years

35 hours
(19 hours)

51 flights
(25 flights)

Location
Tap o Noth,
Rhynie,
UK

Wind Strength:
20-25 km/h

Conditions:,
Moderate Turbulence

Wing Type
Paraglider

Wing:
Gin
Sprint 3

Launch Type:
Foot

Summary
Pilot inflated wing in breezy conditions but had a knot in the lines. Pilot was dragged over into a rock.

Injury
Pilot:
Seriously Injured,

Feet, Legs

Date
01.03.2019

Pilot
Male

Age:
30

Rating:
CP

Flying Experience:
8 years

180 hours
(80 hours)

Location
Fochriw,
Fochriw,
UK

Wind Strength:
15-20 km/h

Conditions:
Calm,
Not Turbulent

Wing Type
Paraglider

Wing:
Ozone
Rush 4

Launch Type:
Foot

Summary
Pilot was ground handling then went to forward launch as wind was dropping off. Speed bar line caught in reserve handle upon launch run which pulled out and inflated the parachute.

Injury
Pilot:
Unhurt

Date
27.02.2019

Pilot
Male

Age:
65

Rating:
AP

Flying Experience:
38 years

1300 hours
(25 hours)

(20 flights)

Location
Parlick,
Lancs,
UK

Wind Strength:
20-25 km/h

Conditions:
Moderate,
Moderate Turbulence

Wing Type
Paraglider

Wing:
Advance
Sigma 10

Launch Type:
Foot

Summary
Pilot attempted to slope land on lower slopes in strong wind conditions. Pilot was caught out by sinking air due to leeside from ground undulations and landed heavily downwind.

Injury
Pilot:
Unhurt

Date
24.02.2019

Pilot
Male

Age:
44

Rating:
CP

Flying Experience:
8 years

12 hours
(1 hour)

140 flights
(15 flights)

Location
Darley Moor,
Asbourne,
UK

Wind Strength:
5-10 km/h

Conditions:
Calm,
Not Turbulent

Wing Type
Powered HG

Wing:
Avian
Fly

Launch Type:
Powered

Engine:
WASP,
SP MK IV

Summary
Pilot took off on powered hang glider but entered a slight turn when reaching across to mouth throttle to disengage the safety cut off. Glider remained in a gentle turn despite the efforts of the pilot who suspected the glider may have stalled. Pilot increased speed and decided to land immediately. Pilot was able to land with only minor damage to the glider.

Injury
Pilot:
Unhurt

Date
23.02.2019

Pilot
Male

Age:
51

Rating:
CP

Flying Experience:
8 years

26 hours

40 flights
(2 flights)

Location
Mere ( Rifle Range ),
Wiltshire,
UK

Wind Strength:
15-20 km/h

Conditions:,
Light Turbulence

Wing Type
Paraglider

Wing:
Advance
Alpha 6

Launch Type:
Foot

Summary
Pilot turned into the hill while attempting to top land. Pilot assumed he would encounter lift as he had on the previous beat.

Injury
Pilot:
Minor Injuries

Last updated: 15 June 2025

Displaying page 80 out of 329

[ Top ] - [ Prev ] - [ Next ] - [ Bottom ]

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.

 

Skywings Magazine Online
Submit an Incident Report
BHPA Pilot Handbook
The BHPA is a members of the Royal Aero Club
The BHPA is a member of the European Hang Gliding and Paragliding Union
The Civil Aviation Authority Drone and Model Aircraft Code
The General Aviation Safety Council Flight Safety Magazine

© British Hang Gliding & Paragliding Association 2004 - 2025