US Hawks Hang Gliding Association

Some landing areas develop a record of injuries over time. They often end up being closed to free flight.
Hang glider pilots should be forewarned about these potentially deadly places so they can avoid them.
In the rare case when a hang glider pilot has no alternative, he must ask himself "Could I land here? Could I land here and survive?"
This blog is to warn hang glider pilots about these risky landing spots and attempt to prepare them for the worst.

July 26, 2015


Could you land in this field -- IF YOU HAD TO?  
Two serious accidents have happened here in July 2015.
http://olomoucky.denik.cz/nehody/paraglidista-se-zritil-na-sjezdovku-v-dolni-morave-20150727-s1aq.html
One helpless falling human broke his spine and leg, another suffered BRAIN INJURIES!
IF YOU ARE FORCED TO LAND YOUR HANG GLIDER HERE -- watch out for helicopters!!!
Don't fly under any paragliders.
Avoid obstacles (marked in orange).
http://olomoucky.denik.cz/galerie/foto.html?mm=paraglide-nehoda20152

Some landing areas develop a record of injuries over time. They often end up being closed to free flight.
Hang glider pilots should be forewarned about these potentially deadly places so they can avoid them.
In the rare case when a hang glider pilot has no alternative, he must ask himself "Could I land here? Could I land here and survive?"
This blog is to warn hang glider pilots about these risky landing spots and attempt to prepare them for the worst.

Ha! Kid stuff, if you have flown hot air balloons.

They have hang gliders and paragliders totally beat when it comes to being forced into less than ideal landing areas. Just one incident I related elsewhere on the Hawks forum about the time I had to land in a stock pen with an angry bull there. Being unable to steer a balloon leads to some very sketchy landings. Also every landing is a down wind landing attached to a massive spinnaker sail. Having done both over a period of years - I prefer hang gliding

Another "fun" balloon landing is trying to stop when a tight thermal is taking you around and around in a continuous circle on and off the ground. Continuous, unplanned, circular, "touch and goes".

Frank Colver

It's been a couple years now since I've flown my paraglider ... but your description of ballooning does remind me of some aspects of paragliding that were not my favorites (like the fear of landing backward in strong winds).