No. 422 The magazine of the British Hang Gliding and Paragliding Association2 SKYWINGS JUNE 2024 attitude As a low-airtime pilot, I have not encountered a particularly wide range of flying conditions or complex scenarios (I haven’t even completed an SIV course). As a result, I suspect that I underestimate the breadth and depth of the skills that are required for more advanced flying situations. Furthermore, any adverse conditions or situations I may have encountered so far have been dealt with more by the design of my wing and less by any piloting skills I believe I may have. What I perceive to be my progress and achievements to date have probably led to overconfidence. I’ve been flying for 18 months, have clocked up nearly 50 hours, passed my Pilot exam, completed a tow conversion, moved up from an A wing to a B, and have managed to fly on multiple sites in several countries. But isn’t the fact that I’m proud of these ‘achievements’ part of the problem, when they give no indication of the only thing that truly matters: how well I fly? Why do I not mention the epic flights I’ve made or the XC distances I’ve achieved? And shouldn’t I really be reminding myself of all the times I’ve let my wing overshoot during launch, missed my intended landing point by a large margin, landed on my backside, or bombed out when everyone else was sky high? Nevertheless, when I tell my family, friends, colleagues and even total strangers that I am now a ‘fully fledged pilot,’ they treat me like a sky god who flies 747s or Eurofighter Typhoons for a living. Basking in their adulation, I try to explain that in paragliding terms I’m just a beginner, but without any real conviction. Although I’ve read the standard paragliding literature – The BHPA Pilot Handbook, Understanding the Sky, Fifty Ways to Fly Better, etc. – avidly read Skywings and XCMag, and have watched numerous YouTube videos, I suspect that I’m still not truly aware of the skills that I still need to develop. YouTube may in fact be counterproductive, as videos of Theo de Blic throwing his wing to launch make it look so easy. This lack of awareness, known as unconscious incompetence, may have led me to an inflated perception of my own competence. Despite having passed the Pilot exam, I undoubtedly do not grasp the intricacies and subtleties of weather, aerodynamics, air law, navigation, and the general dynamics of flying. That it is not possible to do all this in such a short time, or even over decades, is what makes this such a challenging, interesting and exciting sport. This lack of understanding likely leads me to complacency, where I underestimate potential risks and fail to take appropriate precautions. I am probably overestimating my ability to control the wing, and suspect that I do not fully appreciate the nuances of flying in turbulence, thermals, navigating, or managing the unexpected, especially as these tasks have to be done simultaneously. The Dunning-Kruger effect tends to diminish with experience. Meanwhile my only hope is to assiduously follow the safety protocols and checks that I’ve been taught (daily inspection, WGHHCAT, etc.). To not become complacent or take shortcuts; leave a sufficient margin for error; practice pitch and roll control to the point that it requires no conscious effort, thus freeing up my brain for other tasks. To seek advice and feedback from coaches and other pilots, remembering to take on board not just the positive but the negative too; to accept that learning the theory didn’t end when I passed my Pilot exam but keep reading, refreshing and extending my knowledge. And to attend the SIV course I have booked, and generally accumulate as much airtime as possible. All to increase my experience and skill level, which should help me gain a more accurate assessment of my ability. Assuming the Dunning-Kruger effect doesn’t get me in the interim! I suspect that I’m at the most dangerous stage of my paragliding career. The problem being that my confidence level is far higher than my ability. It’s not that I’m arrogant or cocky (I’m amazingly modest), and it isn’t a problem unique to me or low-airtime pilots in general, but to people in many pursuits. It is due to what is known as the Dunning-Kruger effect, a cognitive bias in which individuals with low ability at a particular task overestimate their competence. Driving is a prime example of this effect, where 80% of drivers think their driving skill is above average. The following is how I believe the Dunning-Kruger effect impacts me, and how I hope to overcome it. Mind the gap: confidence vs ability JOHN ADEBAYO, LOW-AIRTIME PILOT Photo: Gin 4 SKYWINGS JUNE 2024 regulars reviews features THE BHPA LTD 8 Merus Court, Meridian Business Park, Leicester LE19 1RJ. Tel: 0116 289 4316. SKYWINGS MAGAZINE is published monthly by the British Hang Gliding and Paragliding Association Ltd to inform, educate and entertain those in the sports of Paragliding and Hang Gliding. The views expressed in this magazine are not necessarily those of the British Hang Gliding and Paragliding Association, their Council, Officers or Editor. The Editor and publisher accept no responsibility for any supposed defects in the goods, services and practices represented or advertised in this magazine. The Editor reserves the right to edit contributions. ISSN 0951-5712 SUBSCRIPTIONS AND DELIVERY ENQUIRIES Tel: 0116 289 4316, THE EDITOR Joe Schofield, 39 London Road, Harleston, Norfolk IP20 9BH. Tel: 01379 855021. COVER PHOTO Markus Gründhammer puts Skyman's Sir Edmund Shark single-surface wing through its paces Photo: Markus Gründhammer THIS PAGE Trützisee below Löffelhorn in the Swiss Alps, with the Finsteraarhorn behind Photo: Robert Smith DESIGN & PRODUCTION Fargher Design Ltd. Killane House, Ballaugh, Isle of Man, IM7 5BD. PRINT & DISTRIBUTION Newman Thomson Ltd, One Jubilee Rd, Victoria Ind. Est, Burgess Hill, RH15 9TL. ADVERTISING Tel: 07624 413737 Email: SKYWINGS ONLINE All issues of Skywings magazine are now freely available DEADLINES News items and event/competition reports for the August issue must be submitted to the Skywings office by Friday June 28th. Letters for the July Airmail pages should arrive no later than Monday June 17th. Advertisement bookings for the July edition must arrive by Monday June 10th. Copy and classified bookings no later than the following Monday June 17th.Unlike other so-called 2.5 liners, the Nestra Light has a Hybrid 3/2 Line construction where the center two thirds of the wing has 3 rows and the last third 2. The result is a dramatically low line consumption (only 215m for M size) for less drag and better performance. All bottom lines on the Nestra Light are unsheathed Aramid/Kevlar, so no periodical trimming is needed as the lines are stable in their length throughout their lifespan. DURABLE LIGHT WEIGHT The Nestra Light uses a hybrid of lightweight, standard and long lasting double siliconised cloth. So although light, our legendary durability has not been compromised. REAL AIR SAFETY LIGHT 2.5 LINE HIGH END EN-B Solid yet communicative, the Nestra Light is confidence inspiring in its behaviour. Letting you push one step further with every flight. CUTTING EDGE HANDLING Enjoy direct precision steering and World Class Apco Refinement in a beautifully balanced wing. Handling is direct and precise with light linear brake pressure up to the 90% mark where it becomes stone hard indicating the stall point. The Nestra Light is suitable for pilots moving up from the A Class or coming down from C/D Categories. LIGHT 2.5 LINE HIGH END EN-B6 SKYWINGS JUNE 2024 news Hike & fly world record On April 26th, French pilot Tanguy Renaud-Goud achieved a new hike-and-fly world record, climbing (and descending) 17,534m in 24 hours. In that time Tanguy climbed more than 800m to a take- off point on Le Criou, near Les Deux-Alpes, no less than 22 times. The ascent takes around an hour; the descent just ten minutes! Tanguy, a Bornes to Fly and X-Alps 2023 veteran, flew Niviuk’s Kode P 16 wing, Roamer 2 P harness and Expe 30 backpack – total weight 2.5kg – during daylight hours. At night he switched to the single-surface Skin 3 P 20 to better accommodate any katabatic wind. He had first taken the record in June 2021 at 13,390m, losing it to Brit Andy Symonds (16,697m) in May 2022. You don’t just need perfect weather and long daylight for these feats – you have to factor in the full moon too! Such records are meticulously planned and recorded, including DGAC clearance to accommodate night flying. Care is taken to exclude any false ascent due to momentary climbs after take-off. The original record was set in 2018 by Lukas Hofer: 13,040m at Italy’s Kronplatz. With the exception of Andy Symonds’ 2022 record using an Ozone XXlite 2, all attempts have involved Niviuk lightweight equipment. The manufacturer is in talks to try and get an overseeing authority to acknowledge and ratify future claims (FAI please note). Popham microlight show The annual Popham microlight trade show took place on May 4th and 5th, combining trade stands with a fly-in and the BMAA AGM, and the opportunity to camp overnight. The recent (2021) raising of the microlight’s all-up maximum weight to 600kg has led to a big increase in the cost of the top-end aircraft. Fortunately the SSDRs and sub-70 powered hang gliders that interest BHPA members were there to fly the flag for affordable aviation. Flylight, Microlite Aviation and Fun Flying had a variety of wings and trikes on show; Microlite also import the Monotrike brand of SSDR and sub-70 trikes. Avian, supplier of some of the sub-70 wings used, had brought a RioT 13 with a sail made from PXB laminate, offering lower stretch than Dacron and thus a performance advantage – seen here on the Microlite stand. Fun Flying, the UK agent for the Snake trike and a choice of wings, have added the EOS Quattro four-stroke engine, first seen at St Hilaire in 2023, to their portfolio. This 280cc four-valve single produces 30hp, transmitted via a belt reduction drive. It’s aimed at sub-70, SSDR and paramotor use. The show’s main attraction was a microlight (but full size) version of the Stampe SV4 trainer, originally designed and built in Belgium between the world wars, and now in production there with a Rotax engine. There was great demand for rides in this charming biplane, soon to achieve a UK Permit to Fly as a factory-built aircraft. [Report and photo: Steve Uzochukwu] BHPA insurance – there is no back door! Recently several pilots have approached the BHPA’s brokers asking whether they could directly purchase the insurance cover that is provided to members without them having to join the Association. Our brokers politely explain that BHPA 3rd-party cover is not a product that can be purchased by individuals. Its effectiveness, and relatively low cost, is a result of it being a scheme in which only BHPA members can participate. Such enquiries reveal a lack of understanding of the multiple advantages – to the individual pilots, the Association and the underwriters – of collective insurance. Firstly there is the bulk buying power: we offer an underwriter an annual premium in the region of £600,000. The underwriter gets a guaranteed large premium, the brokers a substantial commission, and the Association and our pilots get a substantial per capita discount. A further advantage is that the BHPA Admin team keep the record of who is insured (in excess of 7,000 pilots) and who has lapsed, etc, removing all that administration from both underwriters and brokers. And, finally, the Association effectively writes the detailed terms of cover for the policy: that members are covered as long as they comply with the BHPA Rules and Regulations. The underwriters leave it to Exec. and FSC to write sensible Rules and Regs. Neither the brokers nor the underwriters have to learn all the tiny details about our sports, leaving that the Officers of the BHPA who are the experts. All these benefits mean that, as a BHPA member, you benefit from comprehensive cover, tailored to your needs as a pilot, with much higher levels of cover than could be achieved otherwise, and at a lower cost per head than if individuals were to purchase the cover independently. If you hear of anyone speculating about trying to buy cover on an individual basis using our brokers, please remind them of the above points. It will save the Association’s Officers, and the brokers, much wasted time in responding. HANG GLIDING & PARAGLIDING LIFE INSURANCE CRITICAL ILLNESS COVER APPLY ONLINE OR CALL TODAY TO COMPARE RATES WITH YOUR CURRENT COVER Sports Financial Services Ltd is an appointed representative of Suttons Independent Financial Advisers Ltd which is authorised and regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority. Registered in England and Wales. Registered No. 493197. 0345 565 0935 INCOME PROTECTIONnews 8 SKYWINGS JUNE 2024 Helicopter wake turbulence We are delighted to note that background lobbying from the BHPA and the GA Alliance has finally seen helicopter wake turbulence addressed, in the latest rewrite of the CAA’s Safety Sense leaflet on Helicopter Airmanship. Following an outline of how downwash and wake turbulence are generated, the document advises pilots: ‘Be aware of and mitigate the potential impacts of your helicopter’s rotor downwash and wake turbulence on other aircraft, people and property. Both downwash and wake turbulence have caused accidents and incidents in the UK and abroad. Low-mass air vehicles and light aircraft are especially vulnerable due to the strength and persistence of helicopter downwash.’ The BHPA has been trying to get such wisdom included in a heads-up for helicopter pilots for decades. At last such common sense and recognition of reality has made it to a CAA publication; helicopter pilots often underestimate the volume of air that their wake turbulence occupies. We hope that military and commercial pilots are also getting the same message. The BHPA is an active member, through Mark Shaw, of the GA Alliance co-ordination group. CAA Safety Sense leaflets, several of which may be of interest to BHPA members, can be found at Janaways’ record-fest! 100km westward out-and-return flights from Sorica in Slovenia netted the Janaway family no fewer than eight World and European records on April 13th. Magda Janaway, aboard an Ozone Proton, now has claims in for both World and European female 100km speed records at 33.1km/h. On the same day, over the same route, Mark Janaway (16), flying a BGD Epic 2, was able to claim Junior World and European records for Speed over 100km (24.1km/h), Free out-and-return distance (104.5km) and Free distance using up to three turnpoints (109.2km). Some rejoicing in the Janaway household that evening no doubt! Magda’s World claim exceeds Seiko Fukuoka Naviille’s 31.89km/h set in 2014; her European one surpasses Nicole Fedele’s 27.3km/h from 2010. All Mark’s current claims are for previously unset Junior records. [Photo: Magda Janaway] French pilots set team record April 24th saw French team pilots converge on the tiny site at Jeufosse, east of Paris. By the end of the day, at Bergerac in the Dordogne, they had claimed ten world and European records. These include the European previously-unset free-distance-via- three-turnpoints at 460km for Honorin Hamard, Maxime Pinot, Jonathan Marin and Tim Alongi, and the straight-distance-to- goal at 350km for Jonathan Marin and Rémi Bourdelle. With the exception of Rémi Bourdelle (Gin Boomerang 12), all were flying Ozone’s Enzo 3. In addition, from the same site, François Montuori claimed the European Junior free-distance and free- distance-via-three-turnpoints record at 328 and 335km, and Junior Hippolyte Melo the unset world and European straight- distance-to-goal record at 250km. FLARM-PilotAware cooperation EC developers FLARM and PilotAware (PAW) have announced a cooperation deal which will involve technical integration and product development. The new alliance will enable interoperability between FLARM and PilotAware product lines. The UK PilotAware ground station network translates signals from FLARM-carrying aircraft into the PilotAware protocol so that PAW- equipped aircraft within ground-station range can receive it. This allows light aircraft to ‘see’ FLARM-equipped hang gliders, paragliders and sailplanes electronically. The new PilotAware Rosetta FX device can be integrated into a pilot’s existing FLARM system, to complement its functionality with additional features from PilotAware. Further developments are planned. Bobby Bailey Prolific inventor and aeronautical engineer Bobby Bailey died on April 19th at Groveland airport in Florida, when the aircraft he was flying broke up in the air. Bailey, 71, was the designer of the immensely successful Bailey-Moyes Dragonfly tug, a key ingredient of aerotow events worldwide. The Dragonfly revolutionised aerotow hang gliding by providing perfect low-speed tug performance on just 65hp; over a hundred have been built since 1989. Bailey went on to design the Connie Amphib, an ultralight flying boat built on similar lines. A gifted inventor, engineer and exceptionally able pilot, Bailey exhibited absolute craftsmanship in the air and on the ground. [Photo: Michael Zupanc]JUNE 2024 SKYWINGS 9 Quick facts ab bout the NG series: (²) Surface )(k Max load )ih (k)ih (k NG NG light The world´s leading rescue systems Use of high-q• even at low sp g, g • Available in 3 certified acco • New, innovativ • Excellent sink to a jump from • Very reliable o • Intelligent, ligh uality lightweight materials peeds gp sizes as NG and in the light ver rding to EN12491 ve X-Flare concept for high effic k rates, each just over 5 m/s, equ m a height of about 1.3 m opening and extremely good pe htweight construction for fast op pg , NG 14 NG 12 flfhX NG 10 rsion NG light, ciency uivalent endulum stability penings, 33 14040 Serie 2912020 Serie 2510000 Serie (m²)g)(k 1,49 1,85 1,3 18 1,6 ,1 g) 1,45 g)weight (k concept -FlareX- s to the , thankface -Nearly flat top sur innovative X weight (k 1, for oL r fast opening w canopy height projected surface area bution across the large -geneous load distri --flares for homoX stability pendulum outlets for air defined Precisely concept. All BHPA club committees are reminded that all members of a BHPA registered club must also be BHPA members. This is to ensure that the club, its committee and all other club members are covered by BHPA insurance. This includes honorary club members and (eg) committee members who are partners of BHPA members. See the BHPA Technical Manual, Section 1: Chapter 3: Page 2 ‘Without exception, all club/school members must also be BHPA members. In the case of schools this applies to all training staff and students in addition.’ In short, BHPA club members have to be BHPA members. That’s it! BHPA 500 Club WIN CASH PRIZES AND HELP THE ASSOCIATION! April winners: David Wicks £130.60 Andrew Jackson £65.30 Henry Hookings £131.40 Mark Barrett £65.70 Jonathan Browne £32.85 Adam Sullivan £19.71 William Seward £16.43 Godfrey Jones £16.43 John Taylor £13.14 Ian Henderson £13.14 Simon Goodman £9.86 Robert Bradley £9.86 BHPA £328.48 Winners will note that payments of the above sums have been made to the account from which they contribute to the 500 Club by standing order. In case of error, please contact Marc Asquith on 07802 525099. Club membership and BHPA membership Seb takes 2nd place at Grindelwald PWC Seb Ospina ended up just 15 points behind France's Julien Wirtz at the first PWC of the 2024 season at Grindelwald, Switzerland. The event, in early May, was marred by incessant rain and low cloud that allowed only four tasks to be flown. Seb finished the first task in 4th place, and winning the second task four days later eased him into the overall lead. After finishing 12th on the third task Seb held his nerve in the final task to take the overall runner-up spot ahead of Chrigel Maurer flying on home turf. Violeta Jimenz won out over fellow US pilots Alexia Fischer and Jenny O'Neil to take the women's win. Brits Andy McNicol and Chris Bevins finished 91st and 122nd. Full report next month. As we go to press five tasks have been flown in the European Championships at Pegalajar in Spain. The British team is holding second place to the French, hotly challenged by the Slovenian team. Maxime Pinot leads the individual rankings with Seb Ospina in third place and Dylan Mansley in 25th. The Championship runs until June 1st. We will have a full report on the competition next month. Next >