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Any update on permission to fly from a beach? Is it possible? Required for all beaches? Who gives permission?

Installed my beacon. Have to add a switch at some point. The mounting grommet supplied is too big for my PAP frame, so it's fixed temporarily & will need to be replaced as well. http://youtu.be/5c2Y2pPDvns

Never had any experience with them, but I've read negative comments...

I guess I'm the odd one out here! I had been frustrated by learning to hang glide, then not having the money for equipment for a long time. So when I switched to paramotoring I didn't want to make the same mistake... So I saved the money for the equipment first, bought the eqpt & then got my training abroad on school kit while mine was sitting at home waiting to be used. Maybe it was blind luck, but i prefer to think that lots of research & talking to ppg pilots was what resulted in me getting pretty decent and suitable kit.

Have a look at 'Skyads' aswell, some great deals to be negotiated.

Some are certified for motorised flight, some are not. I guess you have to decide to either accept your instructors recommendation, or if you also want to have the piece of paper from the manufacturer. As Alan said, you don't need to worry about this yet if your current wing is suitable for PPG. Just enjoy flying, get some hours up & maybe you'll be in a better position to decide how to spend your money then. Good luck!

My initial training was on a traditional pg wing but my ongoing learning (Because learning always continues) is on my first wing, which is a reflex. I had the same questions and now finally see it like this: (I'm not an instructor, this is my own interpretation. Take it as you will & I'm happy to be corrected on any of it...continuous learning ) 1. Neither every traditional pg or every reflex is safer, it depends on the EN/DHV rating of the individual wing. Some reflex wings are EN-B, whereas some traditional wings are EN-D, while some traditional wings are nice and safe at EN-A. 2. The above notwithstanding, reflex wings are generally more resistant to tucking, because of the aerodynamic damping effect on pitch movements caused by a raised leading edge (It's harder for the wing to nose down). BUT ONLY IF THE REFLEX IS BEING USED ie. Trims open. 3. Because it requires a more extreme situation to tuck a reflex wing with trims open, the forces involved will be by default larger and the resultant incident will be more extreme, dynamic, disorienting etc. if your reflex wing does have a frontal. So what does this mean for me (And possibly you) - My wing (Dudek Synthesis LT) is rated EN-C. Unless I'm mistaken or the situation has changed, reflex wings are rated with trims closed (Non-Reflex mode). So, when I take off on an average day with trims closed and little/no reflex in the wing I am flying an EN-C. I don't particularly like this, but it is what it is. As soon as I can, I open the trimmers and the wing becomes more resistant to pitching movements and frontal collapse. The trimmers open also give me better cruising performance. So in my case, I am sacrificing the potential safety of an EN-A or EN-B wing, for the performance of having reflex in flight. My wing can be flown unpowered aswell, but I won't do that because I don't want to fly an EN-C unpowered. The unfortunate reality is that while opening the trims makes my EN-C wing safer, I usually need to have them closed during the most dangerous part of the flight - landing & taking off. Also, having trimmers is one more thing to remember & worry about when flying, and to remember when landing/taking off or if you get an engine out (My trims are a PITA to close in a hurry for landing ) I wouldn't go back to non-reflex, but I wouldn't condone doing initial training on one. Why? Because initially when learning you wont be using the trimmers anyway, so why with zero experience would anyone want to do repeated low altitude circuits, landings & takeoffs on an EN-C to learn, instead of a forgiving EN-A. I think everyone's initial training should always be on a low end EN-A designed for training. But I'm NOT an instructor, so I could be wrong & I'm sure many would disagree. You can get EN-B reflex wings, but whichever reflex you get, just keep in mind that its safety as per the rating is with the reflex off , with the reflex on its resistance to tucking will increase. But if you get into big air & it does tuck in reflex mode, you want to have the experience & cool head to deal with a very extreme situation. I don't yet, so I avoid any questionable conditions. It's usually recommended to use active flying with reflex off in turbulence in case you hit an unexpected invisible monster. But in my case with reflex off its EN-C & I'm fecked anyway, so I just carefully manage the days & conditions I choose to fly in. Fingers crossed!

There's a good video of cleaning a paraglider wing on YouTube, don't have the link to hand right now. It involved lots of space, a hose, a way to hang it & some other stuff...

Wow! Timely reminder that you don't have to land in the water to be wary of it. My lesson from your video is that I'm going to fix my hook knife somewhere more accessible. Did you unclip to get out or cut yourself free? Would an agama have made any difference or was the water too shallow for that? Thanks for posting it & glad you're ok.

I second the positive comments about Aerofix. Had very straightforward and efficient service from them. [THUMBS UP SIGN]

Good info folks, the iPhone/Pad has obviously come on a bit. I was trying my iPhone 3GS with Livetrack up until now, but above about 1000ft in the Irish winter it was turning off & the screen was hard to see. I think the air temp was lowest -3 from memory. The apple spec's still only say from 0deg+ as operational temp for the iPad. Afraid to spend the money & regret it when I can live without an iPad in my daily life otherwise.

Hi, I'm looking at new vario's. Specifically I'm wondering if anyone is using an iPad/iPhone with flight software. I'm considering an iPad with a Brauniger Sensbox and either: Air Navigation http://www.xample.ch/air-navigation/air ... -features/ or FreeFlight http://www.air-avionics.com/air/index.p ... eflight-en I have 2 questions.... 1. How do you stop it getting cold and switching off? 2. Can you see the screen in the sunshine? If the iPads are not quite there yet, then I'll prob get a Brauniger Competino +. Thanks, D

"can't"

Can you type in the link Simon, I can see it on my iPhone!

Interesting that Hann mentions the trims because I also noticed that when I opened the trimmers, there was no tension on the strap to pull them out past about 10. I wonder were the shortened brake lines restricting the trailing edge from going up that last one or two trim points into full reflex. Again, I won't be flying her for a few months while I'm away, but will definitely check this. I generally try to avoid changing any settings that the wing was certified with.