http://www.fai.org/hang_gliding/meetings/bureau/2007_oct

From the minutes of the CIVL Bureau meeting:

PROPOSED DEFINITION FOR SPORT CLASS HANG GLIDERS

These are hang gliders that meet the FAI definition for Class 1. In addition:

· They must be production models of hang gliders for which a certificate of airworthiness for type is in issue from either the HGMA, BHPA or DHV.

· Must be currently available for sale to the general public or have previously been available for sale for a minimum period of one year.

· Must be unmodified in any respect which could affect flight characteristics except that retro-fitted streamlined uprights and base tubes are permitted*.

· Must have a king post which is an essential part of the design and which supports the majority of the wing load when the wing is not flying.

· The pilot must be within the manufacturer's stated weight range.

Dennis Pagen suggests the addition of "The rule includes pitch stability devices which must be within the manufacturer's stated tolerances" and an additional bullet point "Gliders must be available for inspection upon request".

If this last one is to be added it should be qualified in that it is to be made available to FAI and meet officials - not left open. I do not think it is really necessary as we already require all gliders (in Cat 1 meets) to be available to organisers for an "acceptance check" at the start of a comp (S7A 2.10.4) though perhaps this should be changed to "the organiser and FAI officials.

1. The US ran some Sport Class national meets and also specified that the pilots had to be below a certain level in their national ranking. Although this could be seen as a good way of giving "new" pilots a chance to be a champion, in CIVL we have always run championships in which the limitation on entry is by class of hang glider rather than by any handicapping system and several of our top pilots regularly compete in different classes (Boissilier, Ciech, Reisinger, Chaumet etc).

2. We could also include technical stuff like max wing loading, aspect ratio etc but I am trying to go for something simple to understand i.e. a king posted glider which is not a "special" produced as a "one-off" just to give a manufacturer another thing to hang his advertising on.

This proposal will be forwarded to the Hang Gliding Standing Committee for consideration at the February Plenary meeting.

I suggest that the Guatemalans that made this proposal (based on the 2006 US National Sport and Single Surface Class competition in Big Spring, which they attended) attend the CIVL Plenary in Mexico to make sure that this gets discussed at Dennis Pagen's hang gliding subcommittee meeting and passed to the general meeting.

Discuss Sport Class at the Oz Report forum
   
 
 
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