CIVL delegates. Photo: CIVL / Gudmundsson
CIVL, the body that looks after hang gliding and paragliding records and competitions, met at the end of October.
Delegates of the FAI’s Commission International de Vol Libre convened in Maidenhead, UK, from 21-28 October for an interim bureau meeting. The full minutes of the meeting can be downloaded from CIVL’s website. Some of the items discussed are summarised below:
HELMETS
The rule that FAI Category 1 competitors should wear EN 966 certified helmets has been upheld following a report by Stéphane Malbos in June, which concluded that they are the only ones suitable for airsports. A list of all known EN 966 helmets has been drawn up and will be published on CIVL’s website.
SPROGS
For hang glider sprog measurements, there is now more information on minimum safe settings and best practice available from manufacturers and it should be easier for pilots to check their own settings. 100% testing should not be necessary at the next Cat 1 competitions, but nevertheless the anticipated bill for sprog measurement checking at the World Hang Gliding Championships in Monte Cucco next July is expected to be around €2000.
OPEN CLASS PARAGLIDERS
Martin Scheel and the Open Class technical working group for paragliders are still working on rules for checking structural strength of Open Class paragliders prior to competition, and those for pilot/glider combination. The CIVL minutes note: “New rules for open class gliders will have cost implications on organisers, who may wish to raise the entry fees for pilots flying Open Class gliders to cover this.”
TRACKING
The use of tracking devices in competitions was given the thumbs up, the extra work involved being more than compensated for by the gains in safety and the ease of pilot retrieves. Eventually, perhaps in two to three years, they may also take over the scoring. They will have both GPS and pressure sensor altitude measurements so should give an accurate means of avoiding and identifying airspace infringements.
SPORT CLASS HANG GLIDING
A hang gliding sport class (kingposted gliders) ranking has been added to CIVL’s World Pilot Ranking System (WPRS). Only six pilots are needed to validate a Sport Class event, which can be run alongside Class 2 and 5 events for no extra sanction fee. It is hoped that these moves will encourage more sport class hang gliding competition.
SPORTING LICENSE
The FAI Sporting License database should be up and running from January 2011, which should make it easier for competition organisers to check pilots’ licenses.
The CIVL plenary meeting will take place 24 – 25 February 2011.
Icaro paragliding helmet test – rated to EN 966
