1971
Ground Skimmer |
BRITISH HANG GLIDING HISTORY THE MODERN FLEXWING
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1981
Cross Country Flyer |
The First Ten Years
1976
January. Ted Salisbury flies from Folkestone to Dover and back prone on a Wasp C4221.
18th January The Sunday Mirror runs an article by James Pettigrew about his experience with learning to hang glide.
January. No13 Edition of Wings.
January saw the BHGA release instructions on how to obtain the 'Pilot Certificate and Badge'.
3rd February. Mark Woodhams received a letter from the Home Office about an enquiry into the local bye laws on the South Downs.
February. No14 Edition of Wings.
20th February. Don Liddard made it in to the Ford Newspaper after flying in the Essex Hang Gliding Championships
February. Having been responsible for 13 issues, Nick Regan retires as Editor of Wings! Tony Fuell takes over.
BHGA sets up an Accident/Incident reporting scheme under Roger Discombe, who replaced Miles Handley as Accident Analysis Officer. A reporting form is published.
March.No15 Edition of Wings.
March. The Long Mynd H/G club release its March Newsletter.
March. The first BHGA elections under the new Constitution take place at the Matrix Hall, Coventry. Ann Welch is elected President by acclamation. Martin Hunt is re-elected Chairman, Derek Evans becomes Treasurer and Council Members Garth Thomas, Norman Wyse, Pat King, Peter Day, Frank Flitton, Fred Ashton, Reggie Spooner and Brian Milton are elected.
Hang Gliding became front page news in the March edition of the Pilot Magazine.
A Hang Gliding Instructor’s Association is formed to represent all professional instructors. Secretary is Jeannie Knight.
Birdman Sports run the first Manufacturer’s Challenge event at a variety of sites around mid-Wales, using the task-setting format that later inspired the formation of the British League. The Team prize was won by Hiway with 1300 points, followed by Waspair 1200 points, Skyhook 800 points, McBroom 700 points, Birdman 600 points, Chargus 500 points, Miles Handley 400 points, Vynair 300 points and Kestrel with 100 points. Individual prizes were won jointly by Brian Woods with 600 points, and Tony Beresford 600 points, followed by Simon Wooton 500 points, Graham Hobson 400 points, Norman Milhouse 400 points and Bob Calvert also with 400 points.
15th-16th May. The Long Mynd Hang Gliding club holds its very first competition.
Ted Salisbury claims a 14 mile record flying from the Folkstone to Dover return trip.
Waspair brought out the Falcon lll and was the first British hang glider to feature the cylindricised inflatable leading edges, a pre-cambered keel and slightly elliptical tips. These features were developed from experience with the Nova and Sting gliders. It had a sail area of 215sq-ft a leading edge of 20ft. The keel was 16ft, the span was 28ft 3in, with an aspect ratio of 3.72, and a nose angle 90 degrees. Its billow was 3 degrees and its weight was 39lbs. Priced at £335.00 ex VAT. Falcon Pilot Handling Notes.
May 29th, 30th & 31st The Embassy National Hang Gliding Championships was held at Pickering. The event went well with only one serious accident that involved Allan James who ended up with a broken pelvis and serious internal injuries. The Class 3 finalist was Guy Twiss.
The Pickering Winners were as follows.
Class 1 1st Tony Beresford 130 points, 2nd Ian Thomas 130 points, 3rd Mick Evans 120 points.
Class 2 1st Bob Wisely 200 points, 2nd Brian Milton 200 points, 3rd Robert Sigrist 180 points.
Class 3 1st Johnny Carr 100 points, 2nd Guy Twiss 80 points, G Leason 50 points.John Richard (Rick) Ware remembers flying his Hiway Cloudbase in the competition.
May. Nick Gifford claims a 9 hour 37 minutes flight at Rhosilli flying a Wasp 229B3. Article on page 11 in the No 23 November edition of Wings.
July. No19 Edition of Wings.
July. Barbara Jones crashes at Castlemoreton and later dies of her injuries. Investigation revealed she had put her (seated) harness on wrongly. Guy Twiss died as a result of a downwind-stall accident at Bo-Peep Hill, Firle, Sussex. John Hunter takes over as the BHGA’s Accident Investigation Officer, assisted by Tony Fuell. Wings Article.
BHGA under its new Competition Director Brian Milton holds Class I and Class II trial in the Abergavenny area to assist in the choosing of a British Team for the Kossen World Championships. Brian also publishes his proposal for the British Hang Gliding League, comprising six competitions. The Class 1 chosen pilots were Tony Beresford 100 points, Mike Atkinson 100 points, Ian Thomas 130 points, Mick Evans 120 points, Ray Walder 100 points, Bruce Giddings 100 points, Tom Knight 70 points, and Des Butcher 90 points. Class 2 pilots were Keith Cockcroft 130 points, Lester Cruse 170 points, Bob Wiseley 300 points, Alvin Russell 150 points, Ray Sigrist 180 points, Brian Milton 200 points, Brian Harrison 130 points, Eric Short 110 points, Johnny Carr 180 points, Bruce Hudson 130 points, and Bob Bailey 160 points.
Bob Calvert records a 7-mile cross country flight out of ridge lift, using thermals, on a Hiway 20’ Cloudbase from Pendle Hill to a field near Waddington, Lancs.
The BHGA comes out with a new compulsory Elementary Hang Gliding Certificate, for all pilots flying on club sites throughout the country.
August. No20 Edition of Wings.
August. Kevin Jordan took the UK duration record at 12hrs 15min’s flying a Hiway Cloudbase. Later the endurance record for soaring went up to over 15 hours and from then on flights of longer duration were being recorded until the record was finally abandoned, because of improvements to glider performance, the use of ridge lift that could last for days, and of the fatigue factor on the pilots.
5th August. Denys Irving is killed in an accident at Mill Hill, Sussex flying a Manta Fledgling. Investigation concludes the cause was a downwind stall with inexperience of both the site and the glider as contributory factors. Wings Article
August. The B.H.G.A. adds a few more gliders to its Registered Aircraft's list. Scot-Kites Electra-Flyer (Cirrus 3), also the Firefly 19/16, and the Firefly 20/17. And Sky-Ride's Phoenix 4 and the Phoenix 4B.
7th August. An Article appeared in the Express and Star newpaper calling for a ban on Hang Gliding.
A selection of photos taken by Don Liddard during 1976.
During the year Steve Cohen visited the UK bringing with him his latest glider, while here he undertook a little work for Hiway, its believed that the 'Scorpion' was the result? Photos of his visit.
25th August. The Amateur Photograher magazine published an article on hang gliding and in particular Ken Messenger and Dave Raymond both from Birdman Sports.
28th-29th-30th August The British Hang Glider Championship competition sponsored by Blue Stratus was held at Mere in Wiltshire and. This particular year is known as the “Yellow Welly” event, owing to the popularity of the yellow sailors Wellington boot fashion craze. If you were not wearing a pair then you were not part of hang gliding fraternity. A fashion that Brian Woods followed and was copied by many who wished to follow in his footsteps, including yours truly. This was also the first meeting that Bill Moyes and his son Steve attended.
The Mere 1976 winners are as follows
Class 1 1st Rick Duncan (Aust,Moyes), 2nd Steve Powter (Aust,Ultra-light), 3rd Henry Heggie (Scott)
Class 2 1st Brian Woods (SST), 2nd Steve Moyes (Aust,Moyes), 3rd Dale Clothier (Hiway Special)
Class 3 1st Steve Moyes (Aust, Moyes), 2nd Rick Duncan (Aust, Moyes), 3rd Steve Powter (Aust)
Overall winner was Rick Duncan (Aust).Mere 1976. The Southern Hang Gliding Club Windsock magazine wrote an article about the meeting that was not published until January 1977.
Eclipse Gliders a new manufacture enters the market based in the West Country. They bring out two gliders the SK90 and sold a number of them to local flyers and the SK96 which was an experimental glider which never went into production.
Derek Prentice flying his Hiway 'Cloudbase' at beachy head. (Video footage)
Brian Harrison starts manufacturing in Scotland and comes out with the Firetail and Firefly both had fully battened sails.
September. No21 Editon of Wings.
Gerry Breen offered the Hi-Fli during the first 3 months of 1976 at a special price of £269.00 and £289.00 for the deluxe model. The only concession made to modern trends was the inclusion of two small battens near the tips. By March the Hi-Fli was re-launched as Hi-Fli 1B and aimed at the intermediate to advanced pilot. It could be flown prone, supine or seated and was claimed to have an incredible 7:1+glide angle. It featured a double surface leading edge and an aerofoil shaped keel. The Hi-Fli 2 was for the beginner to intermediate pilot and claimed a reasonable glide angle. It was supplied in 3 sizes for varying pilot weights and had a good roll control through expert use of battens. Pitch stability was provided by a relatively long keel. Hi Fli 2. Claimed an L/D of 6.3:1, and was Price at £336.00 including VAT. Both of the Hi-Fli Models were available in deluxe versions.
5th-6th-7th September. The UK was represented at the first official F.I.A. World Championships being held in Kossen Austria from the 1st to12th September. Tony Beresford comes 6th in Class I, while Ian Thomas is placed 36th and Mike Atkinson is placed 41st. Lester Cruse comes 21st in Class II, with Keith Cockcroft coming 32nd and Robert Wiseley 61st. Johnny Carr comes 10th in Class III, flying a Miles Handley Griffin, and G. Leason comes 28th with D.Goepel coming 33rd.
18th September. Flight International runs and article wrote by T.W. Shreeve (BHGA Technical Officer) on the BHGA Championship competition held at Mere Wiltshire, 28th/30th August
As a result of Brian Woods’s accident, BHGA issues a safety advisory that sails should be securely attached to L/E booms (a torn sail pocket had allowed the sail to slide up the boom, rendering the glider uncontrollable).
Avon Kites brought out the Swift it had been designed by John Glover and featured a folding cross boom to facilitate quick rigging, also a separate back-up wing wire system. The glider was offered in two sizes to suit pilot weights of 9-12st. and 11-15st. and could be quickly converted for seated or prone. The Swift (Medium) had a sail area of 236 sq-ft, a boom of 19ft 4in, a keel of 14ft 9in, and a nose angle 102 degrees. Its billow was 2.5 degrees, with an aspect ratio 3.9.
2nd October. Flight International magazine runs an article by Ann Welch reporting on the first Offical F.I.A. World Hang Gliding championship that was held at Kossen in Austria during September.
3rd October. Anthony Jones dies while hang gliding. Wings Article.
October. No22 Edition of Wings.
October. Brian Milton send out a letter via the October edition of Wings, on how he hopes to form a new League Competition. He is also looking for clubs, manufacturers or individuals to stage the competitions, as well as pilots who wish to take part.
9th October. Flight International runs an article about the rapid growth of hang gliding in the UK. It also shows that there were members of the government at that time, who were even trying to get in banned.
October. The Avon Club and in particular T.J. Flower published for all club members a wind direction requirement article for the use of certain flying sites.
30th October. An article appeared in the Flight International magazine reporting that some members of Parliament wanted to try and ban Hang Gliding i9n the UK.
The Chargus Glider Company came out with two gliders the Midas C and later the Vega.
The Midas C had a sail area of 166sq-ft, a leading edge 19ft 3in, and a keel of 8ft 3in. The nose angle was 110 degrees, with a billow of 1.6 degrees. The aspect ratio was 6.0, with a claimed L/D of 8 to 1, all up price including carrying bag, harness and VAT was £450.00.
The Vega was an intermediate glider with a sail area of 188sq-ft, a leading edge of 19ft and a keel length of16ft. The aspect ratio was 4.47, with a billow of 2.75 degrees. The claimed L/D was 6.5:1, with a nose angle of 100 degrees. In November the price was quoted as £384.00 which included a carrying bag, harness and VAT.Flexi Form Skysails entered the market and came out with the Spirit, which was designed by Paul Maratos and featured a fully battened sail with small roached tips and a relatively short keel. The sail was not cambered, the kite was tuned by fully adjustable double wing wires and a keel camber wire. The Glider came in two sizes. The Medium had a nose angle of 102 degrees, a weight 52 lbs, and an area of 190sq-ft. The leading edge was 20ft 6in, the keel was 10ft 6in, and it came with a price tag of £400.00 or £330.00 for kit option.
Birdman Sports brought out the Firebird for soaring in very low wind speeds and was capable of being rigged very quickly. The Firebird was offered as an intermediate glider in two sizes with leading edges of 19ft and 20ft. The small version had a leading edge 19ft, a Keel of 16, and was priced at £265.00.
Controversy breaks out over whether to send a British Team to compete at the proposed 1977 World Championships to be held in the apartheid-era South Africa. Brian Milton and Gordon Wyse put a motion opposing participation to the November Council meeting.
November. No23 Edition of Wings.
Brian Woods imports Moyes Gliders from Australia.
14th November. Brian Milton and Graham Driscoll achieve a World Record for the highest 2-man balloon drop at 13,750 feet at Church Stretton, Shropshire.
November. Birdman Sports announced that their latest glider the Moonraker was now in full production ready for the new year. The sail was made in 3.8 oz Howe and Bainbridge Dacron and featured an aerofoil shaped center pocket. The sail area was 190sq-ft, with a nose angle of 108 degrees. Its leading edge was 20ft, and span was 32ft, it also had an aspect ratio 5.38, with a billow of only 0.5 degrees, with an introductory price of £375.00 + VAT. It was also described in the factory advertisement leaflet as “This glider is definitely not a coastal floater” a name that was later to be used as the name of the Suffolk hang gliding Club.
Wings Magazine comes up with the Great Christmas Giveaway Competition
December. No24 Edition of Wings.
December all Hang Glider pilots flying in competitions in the UK or abroad will have to be in the possession of a current F.I.A sporting Licence.
December. The B.H.G.A. release figures amounting to almost 6000 people have been through the registered schools during the past 18 months leading up to December this year. While before the B.H.G.A. was formed its claimed that over 2700 learnt to fly by them selves and friends.
December. The Norfolk H/G club release its December Newsletter.
24th December. Alvin Russell the BHGA's first Flying and Training Officer dies in Ireland, after a hang gliding accident. Wings Article.
By the end of 1976 the L/D of most hang gliders had been raised to around 6 to 1.
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