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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.

Powered hang glider

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

Incident reports for paraglider wings 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).

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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 2455 entries for paraglider wings

Displaying page 36 out of 246

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Date Pilot Location Wing Type Summary Injury
Incident Reports

Date
12.06.2021

Pilot
Male

Age:
55

Rating:
AP

Flying Experience:
31 years

1200 hours
(40 hours)

Location
Brecon Beacons,
UK

Wind Strength:
10-15 km/h

Conditions:
Moderate,
Moderate Turbulence

Wing Type
Paraglider

Wing:
Advance
Sigma 10

Launch Type:
Foot

Summary
Pilot suffered asymmetric collapse having encountered sever turbulence. Due to low altitude pilot deployed emergency parachute. Pilot landed on hillside without injury.

Injury
Pilot:
Unhurt

Date
09.06.2021

Pilot
Male

Age:
50

Rating:
P

Location
Milk Hill,
Marlborough,
UK

Wind Strength:
5-10 km/h

Conditions:
Moderate,
Moderate Turbulence

Wing Type
Paraglider

Wing:
Advance
Sigma 10

Launch Type:
Foot

Summary
The pilot was seen to induce a spin at between 50 to 100ft above takeoff. The pilot then made a subsequent control input, stalling the glider to the ground.

Injury
Pilot:
Seriously Injured,

Thoracic Spine

Date
05.06.2021

Pilot
Male

Age:
49

Rating:
AP

Flying Experience:
29 years

2000 hours
(40 hours)

1000 flights
(35 flights)

Location
Pen Cerrig calch,
Abergavenny,
UK

Wind Strength:
10-15 km/h

Conditions:
Moderate,
Strong Turbulence

Wing Type
Paraglider

Wing:
Gin
Leopard

Launch Type:
Foot

Summary
The pilot was ridge soaring in thermic conditions. They encountered sinking air on a downwind beat and were unable to turn away from the hill due to flight paths of other pilots. The pilot was unable to out-glide the shallow slope and impacted the ground.

Injury
Pilot:
Minor Injuries,

Hands, Arms, Shoulder

Date
05.06.2021

Pilot
Male

Age:
64

Rating:
AP

Flying Experience:
29 years

1000 hours
(30 hours)

(10 flights)

Location
Pen Cerrig calch,
Abergavenny,
UK

Wind Strength:
5-10 km/h

Conditions:
Moderate,
Moderate Turbulence

Wing Type
Paraglider

Wing:
Flow Paragliders
Fusion Light

Launch Type:
Foot

Summary
The pilot flew close to the hill in thermic conditions in order to observe an incident / activity on the ground. The paraglider experienced an asymmetric collapse, turning it towards the hill. The pilot's corrective control input stalled the paraglider and the pilot impacted the ground.

Injury
Pilot:
Seriously Injured,

Hands, Arms, Shoulder

Date
04.06.2021

Pilot
Female

Age:
60

Rating:
P

Flying Experience:
15 years

800 hours
(1 hour)

(3 flights)

Location
Westbury White Horse,
Wiltshire,
UK

Wind Strength:
10-15 km/h

Wing Type
Paraglider

Wing:
Ozone
Rush 5

Launch Type:
Foot

Summary
The pilot was blown back on launch and collided with a bench. The pilot considered they did not take sufficient time to assess the wind speed.

Injury
Pilot:
Unhurt

Date
04.06.2021

Pilot
Male

Age:
60

Rating:
P

Flying Experience:
46 years

1500 hours
(13 hours)

2000 flights
(17 flights)

Location
Merthyr,
Merthyr Tydfil,
UK

Wind Strength:
0-5 km/h

Conditions:
Calm,
Not Turbulent

Wing Type
Paraglider

Wing:
Advance
Omega X-Alps 2

Launch Type:
Foot

Summary
The pilot reverse launched their wing in light cross-wind conditions and adopted a head-down, arms-straight-behind pose that they had not previously attempted down a steep hill. The paraglider tips were seen to fold back and the pilot somersaulted over the edge of the hill, causing injury.

Injury
Pilot:
Minor Injuries,

Hands, Arms, Shoulder

Date
01.06.2021

Pilot
Male

Age:
51

Rating:
P

Flying Experience:
34 years

300 hours
(2 hours)

1000 flights
(15 flights)

Location
Beer,
Beer, South Devon,
UK

Wind Strength:
15-20 km/h

Conditions:,
Moderate Turbulence

Wing Type
Paraglider

Wing:
Ozone
Ultralight 3

Launch Type:
Foot

Summary
The pilot launched from easterly facing cliffs expecting to ridge soar. They encountered sinking air and landed uninjured in the undergrowth on the slope.

Injury
Pilot:
Minor Injuries,

Feet, Legs

Date
31.05.2021

Pilot
Male

Age:
30

Rating:
CP

Flying Experience:
7 years

100 hours
(15 hours)

120 flights
(20 flights)

Location
Corndon,
Shropshire,
UK

Wind Strength:
5-10 km/h

Wing Type
Paraglider

Wing:
Advance
Iota 2

Launch Type:
Foot

Summary
During a series of felt and right turn pilot suffered an asymmetric collapse and cravat at 100ft. Pilot landed heavily on a rock

Injury
Pilot:
Seriously Injured,

Feet, Legs

Date
30.05.2021

Pilot
Male

Age:
59

Rating:
P

Location
Pandy,
Abergavenny,
UK

Wind Strength:
20-25 km/h

Conditions:
Moderate,
Moderate Turbulence

Wing Type
Paraglider

Wing:
Gin
Camino

Launch Type:
Foot

Summary
The pilot was launching in strong conditions and was lifted off their feet. The pilot was seen to turn partly the wrong way and made a control input that turned them into slope, where they landed on their upper back.

Injury
Pilot:
Seriously Injured,

Internal Injuries

Date
30.05.2021

Pilot
Male

Age:
55

Rating:
P

Location
Chillerton,
Isle of Wight,
UK

Wind Strength:
10-15 km/h

Conditions:
Calm,
Moderate Turbulence

Wing Type
Paraglider

Wing:
BGD
Lynx

Launch Type:
Foot

Summary
The pilot induced a spin during soaring flight and collided with the hill, sustaining injury.

Injury
Pilot:
Seriously Injured

Last updated: 5 January 2025

Displaying page 36 out of 246

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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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