The paraglider

The flight apparatus

The paraglider is without any doubt the lightest apparatus in existence. In a bag weighing a maximum of 8-10 kg, there is room for everything you need to observe the world from above: wing, harness, instruments and helmet (plus a potential emergency parachute).
Over the years, the paraglider has become a safe craft, and paragliding is one of the activities that more and more people are taking up, especially in the spring and summer.
The equipment consists of several parts:
The wing: the most visible part, created from strong, professional fabric.
The lines: the lines that link all parts of the wing with the pilot’s seat.
The controls: these control the direction of flight and speed of the craft.
The seat: the pilot and his or her companion sit in a seat from which the lines also run to the wing.
The speed bar: this is the bar that can be moved by the pilot’s feet.

Historical paragliding milestones

1965

Dave Barish creates and tests the first paraglider, the flight with this craft is called slope flying.

1966 68

Dave Barish and Dan Poynter perform paragliding stunts on a ski jump, arousing the interest of mountaineers.

1978

Three French skydivers – Jean Claude Bétemps, Gérard Bosson and André Bohn – take off on paragliders in Haute-Savoie.

1985

Laurent de Kalbermatten invents the first paraglider specifically designed for flying.

1987

On this date, the first paragliding world championship is held in Verbier, Switzerland.

2006

The discipline evolved over the years and the first world championship of paragliding acrobatics is held in Villeneuve.