British Hang Gliding & Paragliding Association

Almunecar and Costa Tropical Airspace Update

Restricted airspace R111 has long existed over the Almuñécar area of southern Spain, encompassing several flying sites including Otivar, Itrabo, Loma del Gato, Alfamar and Carchuna.

Please click on the map to view the full size version.

The Spanish military intend to enforce the restrictions for R111 as military helicopters exercise in the area. To comply, local operators such as Hotel California have to seek daily permission to fly within the restricted airspace. The military will then confirm whether, and at what time, they will grant access for paragliding.

If the rules are respected the military will continue to allow paragliding in the area. Hotel California appeals to all pilots who wish to fly in and around Almuñécar to inform themselves before they start flying. Information and registration is available at the new WhatsApp group Almuñécar Vuelo Libre.

Alternatively contact Dirk Bormans at info@hotelcaliforniaspain.com.

Posted: 10 February 2020
By: Paul Dancey

BHPA 2020 AGM

The 2020 BHPA AGM will be held on Saturday March 7th at 2.30pm at the National Sports Centre, Lilleshall, Shropshire. Details of the candidates standing for election were included in the February issue of Skywings Magazine, and are also included in the AGM Reports pack which can be downloaded from this website.

Posted: 4 February 2020
By: Paul Dancey

Top speedflying video

Banish the February blues with the Prospeedflying team's spectacular video from their recent winter hike'n'fly trip to Chile.

Alexander Deyev and Tess Ivchenko, an intrepid pair from Crimea, spent five weeks in a camper van with a couple of Ozone Rapi-Dos wings, skiing and speedflying volcanos at Villarrica, Llaima, Lonquimay and Osorno. Find it here - it's stirring stuff!

Posted: 29 January 2020
By: J. Schofield

Kitty Hawk time machines!

On December 14th Dr Markus Raffel's 1895 Lilienthal hang glider replica flew alongside an authentic replica of the Wright Brothers' 1902 glider. This remarkable event took place at Kitty Hawk on North Carolina's Outer Banks, close to the scene of the Wrights' early gliding experiments and their first flight of a powered aeroplane in December 1903.

The Wright machine had originally been built for the Centennial of Flight celebrations in 2003. The Lilienthal machine was flown by Andy Beem of California's Windsports school; the Wright glider by Billy Vaughn of local operator Kitty Hawk Kites.

'It was one of the best days of my life! reported Andy. 'I got to fly an authentic replica of a Lilienthal glider side-by-side with the 1902 Wright.' Equally elated, Billy Vaughn said, 'I had the presence of mind to look out through the structure of the Wright wing to see the Lilienthal glider flying next to me. It was humbling.'

Respect to the teams that built both replica aircraft, and to their determination in getting them to this historic spot for their momentous meeting. A video of the flights is available on Google Drive.

Posted: 29 January 2020
By: J. Schofield

Dan Burton’s trike OLC win

Well-known trike and paramotor pilot Dan Burton won the trike category of the online 2019 XC Contest after a busy flying season. Although several leading pilots had submitted flights of over 350km during the year, on December 28th Dan was in second place, needing 324km to overtake Czech pilot Martin Lexa.

Early on the 29th Dan flew for seven and a half hours in challenging conditions to record a 326km triangle and take the top spot with 6,878 points over six flights - all FAI triangles.

His route from Topsham near Exeter took him west against a strong headwind to Start Point in South Devon, north to Martinhoe on the North Devon coast, and to Frampton near Dorchester before punching the headwind again for home.

Dan landed his Fresh Breeze Bullix 4T/Gin Falcon 34 combo with four litres of fuel remaining; his average groundspeed had been 43.13km/h. Dan also finished third in the Open Class ranking against more than 400 pilots worldwide.

Posted: 29 January 2020
By: J. Schofield

Changes to Farnborough Airspace

In June 2015, Farnborough Airport submitted a formal airspace change proposal to the Civil Aviation Authority (CAA), and as a result the CAA have now issued an Aeronautical Information Circular (AIC)regarding changes to Farnborough Airspace that will be implemented on the 27 February 2020.

The circular is available for download from this website, and can also be downloaded from the CAA website.

Posted: 26 January 2020
By: Paul Dancey

UK 'tour du lac'!

To encourage XC flying within the Rutland Airsports club Hugh Burnaby-Atkins put up an annual challenge trophy. Hugh also put up a bottle of bubbly as a prize for the first 'tour du lac' of nearby Rutland Water.

Having achieved the feat himself back on May 12th, Hugh was relieved to discover that fellow clubman Richard Barber had also circumnavigated the reservoir, in the other direction, to land about an hour later.

'I didn't take off until 2:30pm as I was on launch marshal duty,' he reported. 'It took about two hours to get round and it was still booming when I came back - the potential for much bigger triangles or open distance is huge.'

At the end of the season Hugh was presented with his own trophy for what is believed to be the first-ever circuit of Rutland Water by paraglider. Led by his example, Rutland Airsports' winch operation at North Luffenham, in the heart of the east midlands flatlands, is becoming an emerging force in XC flying. 

Posted: 17 December 2019
By: J. Schofield

BHPA AGM

The BHPA's 2020 Annual General Meeting runs at a new location - the National Sports Centre at Lilleshall, Shropshire - on the afternoon of Saturday March 7th, straight after the BHPA Trainers Conference.

The current Exec will report on their work and members will be able to cross-examine them on their achievements. Members will be able to vote in person, by proxy and by remotely. This last can be done by posting your voting form or scanning it and sending it to the BHPA Office (see February 2020 issue of Skywings).

The meeting will commence at 2:30pm with the election of officers to the BHPA Exec, followed by Officers' reports and a members' open discussion forum. It will again be streamed live to the internet.

Posted: 17 December 2019
By: J. Schofield