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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 speedflyer/miniwing 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).

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 36 entries for speedflyer/miniwing wings

Displaying page 4 out of 4

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Date Pilot Location Wing Type Summary Injury
Incident Reports

Date
04.12.2013

Pilot
Male

Age:
48

Rating:
Unqualified

Flying Experience:
5 hours

Location
Pendle,
Lancashire,
UK

Wind Strength:
35-40 km/h

Conditions:,
Strong Turbulence

Wing Type
Speedflyer/Miniwing

Wing:
Ozone
Firefly

Launch Type:
Foot

Summary
Pilot suffered asymmetric collapse at low level in windy and turbulent conditions. Pilot crashed and was fatally injured.

Injury
Pilot:
Fatal

Date
05.09.2013

Pilot
Male

Age:
30

Rating:
CP

Flying Experience:
16 years


Location
Hay Bluff,
UK

Wind Strength:
30-35 km/h

Wing Type
Speedflyer/Miniwing

Wing:
Aska
One Seven

Launch Type:
Foot

Summary
Pilot applied too much control and initiated a sudden dive causing rapid loss of height and increase in speed. Pilot crashed into ridge at speed.

Injury
Pilot:
Seriously Injured,

Pelvis

Date
13.04.2013

Pilot
Male

Age:
43

Rating:
P

Flying Experience:
19 years

300 hours

500 flights

Location
Parlick,
Lancashire,
UK

Wind Strength:
20-25 km/h

Conditions:,
Moderate Turbulence

Wing Type
Speedflyer/Miniwing

Wing:
Gin Gliders
Bobcat

Launch Type:
Foot

Summary
While kiting speed wing up the slope the pilot was lifted by a gust and swung to the side twisting the pilot's knee.

Injury
Pilot:
Minor Injuries,

Feet, Legs

Date
14.10.2012

Pilot
Male

Age:
33

Rating:
P

Flying Experience:
16 years

200 hours

Location
Rhossili,
Swansea,
UK

Wind Strength:
35-40 km/h

Wing Type
Speedflyer/Miniwing

Wing:
Ozone
Fazer

Launch Type:
Foot

Summary
Pilot was soaring mini wing and misjudged downwind beat. Impacted heavily.

Injury
Pilot:
Seriously Injured,

Lumbar Spine

Date
18.03.2012

Pilot
Male

Rating:
Unqualified

Location
Magilligan,
Northern Ireland,
UK

Wind Strength:
35-40 km/h

Conditions:,
Light Turbulence

Wing Type
Speedflyer/Miniwing

Wing:
Gin Gliders
Bobcat

Launch Type:
Foot

Summary
Pilot flew into rotor attempting to top land in strong winds.

Injury
Pilot:
Seriously Injured

Date
04.10.2011

Pilot
Male

Age:
29

Location
Milk Hill,
UK

Wind Strength:
12-19 km/h

Conditions:
Smooth/Steady

Wing Type
Speedflyer/Miniwing

Wing:
Gin
Bobcat

Launch Type:
Foot (Assisted)

Summary
Pilot applied too much brake after launch and stalled glider. Landed heavily.

Injury
Pilot:
Whiplash and sprained knee

Last updated: 5 January 2025

Displaying page 4 out of 4

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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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