Paragliding
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.

Speed Wing (Courtesy Alan Clarke)

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 3239 entries for all wing types

Displaying page 80 out of 324

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

Date Pilot Location Wing Type Summary Injury
Incident Reports

Date
25.09.2018

Pilot
Male

Age:
65

Flying Experience:
7 years

30 flights
(30 flights)

Location
Longstone Edge,
Derbyshire,
UK

Wind Strength:
5-10 km/h

Conditions:
Calm,
Not Turbulent

Wing Type
Paraglider

Wing:
Macpara
Muse 1

Launch Type:
Foot

Summary
Student tripped while running after a forward launch.

Injury
Pilot:
Minor Injuries,

Hands, Arms, Shoulder

Date
24.09.2018

Pilot
Male

Age:
61

Rating:
P

Flying Experience:
25 years

625 hours
(40 hours)

1000 flights
(60 flights)

Location
Chalvet west,
St Andre les Alpes,
France

Wind Strength:
20-25 km/h

Conditions:
Calm,
Light Turbulence

Wing Type
Paraglider

Wing:
Gin
Yeti 4

Launch Type:
Foot

Summary
On launching the right leg strap buckle became undone and pilot could not refasten it inflight. Pilot decided to land immediately. On inspection of the flat plate buckle pilot decided it had not been correctly fastened and had not been noticed due to insufficient pre-flight check.

Injury
Pilot:
Unhurt

Date
24.09.2018

Pilot
Male

Age:
55

Rating:
CP

Flying Experience:
11 years

157 hours

Location
Saint Vincent,
Saint Vincent,
France

Wind Strength:
5-10 km/h

Conditions:
Calm,
Not Turbulent

Wing Type
Paraglider

Wing:
Ozone
Buzz Z 5

Launch Type:
Foot

Summary
Pilot launched with slow airspeed and glider suffered a large asymmetric collapse. Pilot fell 20ft to road below take-off.

Injury
Pilot:
Seriously Injured,

Feet, Legs

Date
24.09.2018

Pilot
Male

Age:
58

Rating:
AP

Flying Experience:
40 years

2000 hours
(20 hours)

Location
Dungiven west,
UK

Wing Type
Flexwing Hang Glider

Wing:
Icaro 2000
Laminar 2000

Launch Type:
Foot

Summary
Pilot successfully deployed drogue, attached to left shoulder strap, for a downslope landing. Pilot found glider impossible to turn and crashed onto a road having flown under telephone lines and over a hedge.

Injury
Pilot:
Minor Injuries

Date
16.09.2018

Pilot
Male

Age:
58

Rating:
P

Flying Experience:
22 years

100 hours
(10 hours)

300 flights
(30 flights)

Location
Algodonales south east,
Algodonales,
Spain

Wind Strength:
5-10 km/h

Conditions:
Moderate,
Light Turbulence

Wing Type
Paraglider

Wing:
UP
Ascent 3

Launch Type:
Foot

Summary
Attempting to avoid imminent rain, pilot opted to land upwind of the landing field. Pilot suspects he stalled the wing on approach but has not memory of the events.

Injury
Pilot:
Minor Injuries,

Pelvis

Date
13.09.2018

Pilot
Male

Age:
59

Rating:
P

Flying Experience:
26 years


Location
Rybury,
Alton barns ( closest village ),
UK

Wind Strength:
25-30 km/h

Conditions:
Moderate,
Moderate Turbulence

Wing Type
Paraglider

Wing:
Gradient
Aspen 4

Launch Type:
Foot

Summary
Pilot suffered small asymmetric collapse having passed behind another paraglider. Collapse was over-controlled and glider entered a spin. Pilot was swung into the hill and was then dragged. The wind had gone off the slope and was gusting.

Injury
Pilot:
Seriously Injured

Date
13.09.2018

Pilot
Male

Age:
68

Rating:
EP

Flying Experience:
9 years

1 hour

Location
Swyre Hill,
Dorset,
UK

Wind Strength:
15-20 km/h

Conditions:
Calm,
Not Turbulent

Wing Type
Paraglider

Wing:
Ozone
Mojo5

Launch Type:
Foot

Summary
In focussing on getting his legs down for landing the student lost track of his altitude and flared too high, landing heavily.

Injury
Pilot:
Seriously Injured,

Thorax

Date
12.09.2018

Pilot
Male

Age:
41

Flying Experience:
7 years

3 flights
(3 flights)

Location
Beddingham,
Lewes,
UK

Wind Strength:
5-10 km/h

Conditions:
Calm,
Not Turbulent

Wing Type
Paraglider

Wing:
Ozone
Element 2

Launch Type:
Foot

Summary
Student became 'object fixated' on approach and caught his leg on the mud guard of a trailer.

Injury
Pilot:
Minor Injuries,

Feet, Legs

Date
02.09.2018

Pilot
Male

Age:
51

Rating:
EP

Location
High & Over,
Alfriston,
UK

Wind Strength:
10-15 km/h

Conditions:,
Light Turbulence

Wing Type
Paraglider

Wing:
U-Turn
Evolution

Launch Type:
Foot

Summary
Student had midi collision with another paraglider pilot while ridge soaring. Glider wing tips brushed together. Both pilots landed safely.

Injury
Pilot:
Unhurt

Date
31.08.2018

Pilot
Male

Age:
25

Rating:
Unknown

Flying Experience:
8 years

50 hours

Location
East Knoyle,
East Knoyle,
UK

Wind Strength:
5-10 km/h

Conditions:
Calm,
Not Turbulent

Wing Type
Powered PG

Wing:
Paramania
GTX

Launch Type:
Powered

Engine:
Parajet,
Zenith

Summary
Glider seen going from stable flight into wing-over maneuver which progressed into deep spiral dive, which pilot was unable to recover. Rapid loss of height resulting in impact to ground and adjacent power lines.

Injury
Pilot:
Fatal

Last updated: 5 January 2025

Displaying page 80 out of 324

[ 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