Safety Checks

string 3.0 Paraglider Harness Recall

Following a flight incident, we have discovered a structural weakness in the String 3.0 harness. We ask pilots who own this model not to fly it any more.

Serial numbers starting with I13 (followed by 3 digits) are affected.

These harnesses were released in 2021.

All pilots with a 2021 String 3.0 are asked to return it to the NEO workshop (ZA des Vernays, 74210 Doussard) or to contact their dealer.

A reinforcement eliminating this risk will be made in a short time. - The NEO Team

Woody Valley X-R7 Paraglider Harness Parachute Handle

Omologation n°: EAPR-GZ-0541/16

All with plastic reserve parachute handle to be checked before flying.

Unfortunately we have recorded a case of low-load breakage on one of our X-Rated7 rescue handles.

Test results on harnesses sold in 20162017-2018 show that the aging factor of the materials is not the cause, which we think might be the accidental sharp edge of one of the tallurit.

To prevent any other possible case of such breakage, we have decided to replace the plastic-wired rescue handles with the most recent steel-wired ones. You can contact your local dealer or national distributor www.

Thanks

I wish to thank Bill Degen for all that he has done to promote and foster the sport of hang gliding over many decades.

The Omarama Classic and the NZ Cross Country Championship are two of the events which have boosted cross country flying on this country over the years. In their heyday both of these had high pilot participation levels. We would regularly see the Classic having more pilots than the Nationals and there were big numbers entering their flights in the NZ XC Champs. Bill has put in a lot of work for this over the years and it is appreciated by the NZ HG community.

In recent years however there has been a decline in this participation. I think that this may be due to the two events not evolving in changing times. One thing that has reignited the passion for XC flying in this country just over the last summer, the passion that we used to have in the aforementioned two events that Bill generously promoted, has been XContest.

Why is this so? XContest updates instantly as soon as a flight is completed. Pilots can see their ranking change on a daily basis. All pilots tracklogs are viewable. We are all excited to see what routes are possible. No special gear is needed for downloads, just an Android phone. We has seen many PBs flown this year and several pilots who have not flown much XC in recent years are now going XC on every flight they do.

Participation rates are high in this exciting format. Pilot skill is being raised to new levels. There was huge buy-in to the inaugural Aoraki Classic that used XContest as its scoring mechanism. Pilots were plotting triangles and out-and-returns. Good for the environment, easier on the drivers and another dimension over and above straight line distance. This summer has been an absolute blast!

So hop on board XContest and ride this wave until the next big thing comes along. woodyvalley.eu/en/dealers.php to get a free replacement handle.

While waiting to receive the replacement handles, here’s how you can make sure your plastic-wired rescue handle is safe. As shown in the picture, with your arms you can apply a pulling force on the handle, a person of average build in good health can apply a 30-50 kg force, which is more than enough to assess airworthiness. 18/03/22 - Woody Valley s.r.l.

SiTE ClOSURES

In Springtime throughout New Zealand, farms are expecting newborn sheep, cattle, horses, deer and other animals. Your presence on or flying over farmland could frighten or injure pregnant or newborn stock. Even at places that you usually fly without problems, please check with the farmer if it is OK to fly. This is a difficult time for farmers and they do appreciate your consideration. Not asking has resulted in the loss of many flying sites while asking has earned their friendship. If in doubt or if any stock are present DO NOT FLY without asking.

WaNT a bETTER mag?

airborn magazine needs your articles and photos. We’d like to read about your flights, frights, sites, experiences and techniques. anything that’s of interest to pilots and educating or enthusing to pilots is especially welcome.

Airborn can’t afford to pay you but does post contributors a complimentary copy which you should receive a day or so before everyone else.

Just email your text to; aero@xtra. co.nz or put it on CD, DVD, Flash drive or even floppy disk. Most text programs such as Microsoft Word (Windows or Mac) are fine. Please do not put photos in MS Word files as this reduces the resolution, supply photo files separately. If it’s not digital, clean laser or typed copy helpsif its printed on one side of the paper only.

INCLUDE PHOTOS, of the people, place or gliders involved and even one of yourself to make the article more interesting. It’s now all in colour and with digital photo editing, it’s amazing what we can do to enhance ordinary snapshots. Digital images need to be original high resolution. Contact me if you want help sending large files.

Photos for the cover should be eye-catching, colourful, sharp, and high resolution. You can also send transparencies or prints for scanning. Anything marked with a return address will be returned with your complimentary copy.

Help promote or make our sport safer, and Airborn will present your contribution in the best way possible.