I’ve set up a Twitter account at www.Twitter.com/PrecisionFly (phone me for the login password) for all students and ex-student member pilots able/willing to ‘text chat’ via internet enabled phones/as to the plan for the days flying as well as giving hillside weather/flying condition ‘Mark One Eyeball’ reports.

The Twitter account can also be used to give RAPID updates on any site restriction (Farmer/Landowner & ATC requests/legal requirements) also worth posting when a bottle has been dropped of at one of the many farmers who are kind enough to give the club 4×4 access to the hill top launch points or private parking in the bottom fields/farmyards!

In the case of flying at Brimmond Hill, which is within the ATZ (Class D) at least one pilot MUST be in direct contact with ATC i.e that pilot MUST hold a FRTO and be carrying a Type Approved, Licenced Airband Radio, if flying with other (non-radio) member the pilot in contact with ATC MUST be able to instruct all other paraglider to land promptly when instructed by ATC (I.e. using ‘box two’ R/T on 118.675mHz, the club Freq, or by use of an audio ‘land’ warning like say an AirHorn)

For new members the basic procedure is to phone/text Murray on 0783-11-22-480 (you can also Email ClassD@ESPclub.org) giving the requested OPENING (& CLOSING) time

 NOTE you MUST state as to if times you are requesting ’Zulu’ OR if times you give are ‘Local’, as in the summer the error in giving the wrong reference is one hour! Closing time can also be given as end of Aviation Daylight (30 mins after official sun down aat the Airfield)

ATC also requires to know how many gliders the clearance is for, if this includes non-members they MUST be flying legally i.e NO USE OF ILLEGAL 2m RADIOS Etc! As Class D clearance can NOT be given for illegal flying!

Due to the limits imposed on a SVFR, ATC MUST be able to use a single point of contact to close the clearance at short notice FOR ALL PARAGLIDERS FLYING, this happens a few times per year when the weather (normally cloud base heights) drops below certain limits.

This week we also had a rare case of the change in the classification of the ‘Class D’! Alan Coffin had sent a request text to Murray requesting that Nigg be activated for two hours, till 1900 (local) and was able to start flying as soon as the request had been approved by ATC, with the conditions changing towards the end of the SVFR in fact this day flying ended (text sent) and Murray phoned ATC to close the Class D, as on checking earlier the METAR/TAF on SkyBookGA (BlackBerry access) Murray had noted that Aberdeen CTR was ‘NOTAMED’ for one hour (from 2000 to 2100) to CHANGE TO CLASS A AIRSPACE….. The change to Class A (NO VFR permitted) was due to a Royal Flight, so it is not just weather conditions which can result in ATC requiring us to not/stop paragliding, and on occasions this can be at short notice! One other occasion I experienced was when flying in the Leuchars MATZ, on ‘7/11′ when the whole of the UK Airspace was shut down

 Murray Hay

PS If other (NON-members) pilots are added to the Class D clearance, the clearance CAN ONLY REMAIN ACTIVE WHILE at least one ESPclub member is present.

The ski centers website currently has limited info. but as of the end of July 2010, quotes a full day (up to 4:30) adult up-lift (with bike) of £15.

 In the past the center has opened on one off’s like the 1997(or perhaps ‘98?) HG event I took photographs of, and more recently Glenshee has started limited summer opening for walkers (and of course paragliding), so the development of Mtn. Biking looks to give a boost to mountain thermal training and mountain XC flying in Scotland.

 This last couple of years a number of the pilots who have/currently fly with ESP club have done (or come close to!) record distance flights and I can see use of the up-lift at Glenshee increasing this type of flying, with car sharing giving the chance of a couple of ‘bites at the cherry’ in the same day!

 In addition to the named/notified PG sites, as the LARS unit provides ‘conflict’ information to the many GA aircraft flying in this part of Fife they can also assist us in maintaining safe seperation from light aircraft by advising those GA pilots of the areas we are thermal flying, provided radio contact with ATC is maintained.

 While there are only minor up-date changes (mainly including more detailed information regarding thermal flights/routes) members are required to read the LOA before flying at a number of the training sites managed by Precision Paragliding.

At some of the ‘open’ sites along the Tay south bank it is strongly advised to check with Murray as to the site status on that day (farmers/landowners requests) as well as to let the RAF controllers inform the Jet Jocks where we are soaring.
Remember it’s not just to ensure safe separation between RAF Jets if anything the hazards from Helicopters quite legaly flying in the Class G airspace of Fife passing in front of a slope or over the top of a hill at low level can not be over stated!

Not to mention that on occasions the controler may call Murray up on the radio to check no PG pilots are about to bottom land… then pass (on one occasion 4 in tight formation following the A92 well below hill top height!) some jets BELOW the paragliders! 

Murray Hay

A Husband, Father and Brother

Lost April 2009 along with 15 other

souls in the North Sea helicopter crash

Our friend, who will be sadly missed.

After watching my partner (Paul) having paragliding tuition from Murray Hay, I decided, after some encouragement, to ‘give it a go’.  I accompanied them both to a hillside near Dundee and after watching Paul and Murray, I suddenly found myself saying to Murray I was ready for a tandem flight.  I felt quite excited but did not give it too much thought - otherwise I might have talked myself out of it!

 A very short while later, Murray was getting me into the harness and Paul was doing up the straps; I was then anxious to ‘get up there’.  Basically all I had to do was relax and let Murray do all the work, which was quite reassuring.  After waiting for the wind to come right, we took a few steps and suddenly we were in the air and Murray called out: “Launching!”  It was a wonderful weightless feeling – I felt so calm and relaxed and in a way ‘free’.  I remember thinking so this is how the birds in the sky must feel.  We flew all the way down to the bottom of the hill and had a very smooth landing.  My partner came down the hill towards me and I had a big cheesy grin on my face, which said it all. 

 I did a further two flights before we changed location to Arbroath, where I experienced an extended ridge flight, soaring backwards and forwards along the coast, which was a faster pace and quite exhilarating.  We did lots of turns with Murray instructing me to ‘lean to the left, or right’.  It felt surreal to be flying over so many people and Murray encouraged me to give them a wave as we passed over them.  This flight lasted approximately 20 minutes, by which time I had lost my initial nerves and thoroughly enjoyed the whole experience.

 This experience helped me understand why paragliding holds so much appeal.  I am scared of heights and I really don’t think I could have done this had I not been so confident in Murray Hay’s ability.  I would highly recommend this tandem flying experience as if you don’t do it, you will never know what you are missing. I can’t wait to do it all again!

 Jane (& Strutty)

In one single week during late July ’08 at Precision we had a total of 5 days of flight training (six days flying) in the east of Scotland. As is becoming more and more common the new PPC students entering the sport were from all across the UK, with this week folk arriving from Wolverhampton, Glasgow and Aberdeen areas to train.

Monday started with Paul coming up from England for a three day starter short course, opting to train at Precision rather than train with any of the (9) BHPA schools local to his home area!

Paul spent a lot of time looking at the paragliding standards on sites like YouTube, his main reason for choosing Precision came down to the fact that most (95%) of what I teach directly contradicts what is taught by the BHPA, and so results in a significant difference in standards.

Monday (‘Day One’): Paul arrived in Scotland very early and we met up in
Fife at sunrise (4:30 am!), with him having fairly high expectations for the three days training, I think it’s safe to say he left on Wednesday afternoon with those expectations more than exceeded!

Paul: “I didn’t take the decision to train with
Murray lightly. I knew it would involve a round trip of at least 700 miles, so had to be sure the effort and cost would be worthwhile. At the age of 51 and a total novice, I wanted to make sure I would receive the best training in safe flying. I was aware that paragliding can be dangerous, that accidents do happen, but I had no wish to become ‘another statistic’. Having spent several hours on the phone to him, (during which time we covered a lot of theory) I was confident I was doing the right thing. I’d already been awake a lot of hours, had done a day’s work and driven 430 miles by the time I met up with Murray, so it’s testament to his teaching skills that he managed to keep my mind and body focused on the tasks in hand. We had clocked up around 24 flights before I finally succumbed to exhaustion on a sunny Scottish hillside that afternoon.”

Murray:  Two late morning phone calls to the hill top from more new students (two from Aberdeen & one from  Glasgow area) worked in nicely as it would give Paul time to ‘cat nap’ later on in the afternoon, as training (as normal) was planned to continue till near sunset, subject of course to student ‘energy levels’!

In the middle of the day we delayed an intended bottom landing flight (for lunch) so we could also meet Sam (Glasgow) by the main road, continuing with short flights and then flying all the way to the farm once Sam had called from the big roundabout several miles south of the hill, giving us time to bottom land/fold the glider & walk to the main road.

Sam decided to travel to Tayside/Fife for his training despite two BHPA schools in his area, and only needed to wait a couple of weeks for the right conditions/day off work to get started. One advantage with Precision is, subject to my work commitments in commercial photography/property management, training takes place both mid-week & weekend, it is easy to quickly build the 15-25 hours airtime in a few months to reach the Precision PG Basic Pilot standard.

Having fed, watered & met up with Sam, Paul, Sam and myself were soon back at the hill top ready for more Dual Control flights, first flight of the afternoon session with Paul on the Dual controls, and following that demonstration Sam’s first flights observing & assisting the ‘Wing Warp’ primary control prior to flying with the Dual Controls connected on his next flights.

Once the other two new students (from Aberdeen) had arrived at the main SW launch point Paul took the opportunity to have a snooze while the other three took their turn flying using the Dual controls, often including the launch & landing.

Paul: “It was only the ONE snooze!”

During the mid –afternoon the only change from SOP (standard operating procedure) was that the mandatory calls of “LAUNCHING” were more a case of ‘shouting pianissimo’ i.e. “launching” (quietly!) so as not to disturb Paul

Paul: “They are a very considerate lot!”

After any walk ups (some flights were ‘top landing’) the last pilot filmed video for later review/YouTube of the next student, then just rested/watched the flying before it was their turn again. With everyone rapidly building airtime, including on the controls for launch & landing, the afternoon quickly passed, the only down point was Sam getting an emergency call to head back to the west coast after only having time for a few flights.

Based on the MET aviation reports I had predicted that Fife would ‘blow out’ some time between late afternoon & tea time so it was simply a matter of keeping a close eye on the conditions ‘Mark One Eyeball’, helped by MET updates via the mobile internet until, as forecast the conditions started to become too windy for good ‘Day One’ student tandem training.

Calling an end to that part of the days flight training and leaving the ‘part day’ students to walk down the hill,  Paul, after his short snooze.. got in one more big Dual Control flight to land leaving just a short walk to the car, then drive to Dundee for food & several cups of tea, a review of the flying (and MET updates) before Paul & the Aberdeen students headed to the last site of the day, everyone getting in several more short tandem flights in non-thermic (wind only) conditions, this in the early stages of training makes for better ground control ‘Taxi’ instruction.

Tuesday: As it had look likely on the longer term synoptic, it was too windy in Tayside/Fife so the morning was spent on review and more MET, Aerodynamics and other ground school work until Alan Coffin, an ex-BHPA pilot who re-trained with me a couple of years ago (and now has several 100 hours flight time) phoned to ask me to open one of our Class D airspace sites up in Aberdeen. He reported that the conditions there had become good, he often takes a ‘long lunch’ from work to fly our site under a mile from his office!… A quick call to ATC and an equipment check/load the car saw Paul on his way to fly his third site in
Scotland, stopping off to buy sunscreen!

Paul: “Yes – really! I seriously did not think I would need to pack that!”

We arrived in perfect timing to get in first more tandem training flights, before with the mellowing conditions saw Alan heading off and so, in the now lighter (and dropping) breeze Paul got his first solo hop’s.Wednesday: Being Paul’s last (part) day in Scotland and needing to leave early to drive back to England, the choice was
Fife again, in part to save him some driving time, and so gain more time for flying. The wind forecast was for SSW to SW and as the intention was for more solo airtime, it was another SW site where we have private vehicle access direct to the top of the open grassy slope, giving first easy Dual Control tandem training and soon switching to the solo equipment (and back) as the conditions dictated the type of training during the morning/early afternoon.

In conclusion I leave Paul to sum up his start in the sport:

Paul: “How many instructors do you know who would be willing to meet up and start the day at 4.30am? And continue training until sunset? That sums up Murray Hay’s commitment to, and passion for, the sport. Paragliding, like many other

outdoor sports, is very much subject to the weather, and this is where
Murray’s knowledge of the weather and surrounding area plus access to a huge range of launch sites, is such a bonus. We were able to successfully train and fly at a variety of sites without training being adversely affected by changing conditions.

It wasn’t difficult to have confidence in, and great respect for, a guy who can demonstrate such incredible flying skills and depth of knowledge.
Murray’s teaching style is unique and effective. Rather than telling you things, he encourages you to realise that by utilising the information you already have, it’s possible to find the answer for yourself. This results in a greater degree of understanding and knowledge retention. He also exhibits enormous patience!The third day culminated in my first real solo flights, and with my confidence boosted by
Murray’s calm instructions over the radio, I executed the required tasks and made safe landings at the bottom of the hill. I enjoyed it so much I was convinced I would require surgery to remove the grin off my face!

I didn’t really expect to go ‘solo’ during this first trip to
Scotland, thinking that all flying would be on the dual control tandem, so I was delighted to have been able to take such a major step before having to leave. I will approach my next visit with much more confidence. I am utterly hooked and can’t wait for time and funds to allow the next session!”

Goa lies to the south of Mumbai on the Arabian Sea. There are plenty of beaches on North and South Goa with a number of take off points above the cliffs. The location I was flying was above Arjuna Beach in North Goa. There are many hazards to consider in the form of coconut trees and shrubs all over the area. Also tree landings are common there where the locals will endure the biting red ants to retrieve a deflated canopy. I saw one unfortunate incident where a pilot decided to go tree hugging. Careful flight planning was the order of the day where there were limited options for both top and bottom landings. There were local pilots around who advised on flying conditions and the best spots to go.

If you enjoy coastal soaring then Goa is a great location for a flying trip. I did not get a chance to go XC but going over the back was a real risk because of the density of the trees and consideration for the retrieve.

But getting good height on some of the days provided worthwhile with splendid views of the area.

Food drink and accommodation are relatively cheap with Beer around 70p a bottle, a two course meal for £3, and a room with A/C for £13 a night so for the Tight Fisted Scotsman it is Heaven.

Mumbai is around a 9 hour flight from London Heathrow. BA, Virgin, Air India, Sri Lankan Airlines all operate regular flights there.

My next trip away is to Chamonix in France in May with Ian Archer to fly from the steep slopes and hopefully avoid the strong valley winds in the afternoons.

Hope to see you on the hill soon.

Fly Safe!

Duncan

 While the changes in land access do open up most of Scotland for foot access (including to climb to hill tops for launching) the act expressly states that there is a duty to ‘maintain contact’ with the land managers for recognised flying sites… Please remember that it is due, over the last ten years to many 100’s of hours of hard work and a considerable amount of money, which has been spent on improving fences and tracks etc. etc. as well as donating numerous bottles of malt to farmers and/or taking them tandem flying, that has resulted in the club being widely welcomed by the farmers & landowners, often on sites which the farmers have previously asked BHPA pilots to refain from flying due to accidents or stock/crops issues!

 The great reputation the club has built up over the years can be just as easily lost by ANY PG pilots (including members!) just turning up with no idea of the current go/no-go areas (or having accidents!) or damaging crops/fences/disturbing stock recently put back on to the hills, or of course flying outwith agreements/clearence (with ATC).

Already this year there have been a couple of instances where farmers have been annoyed by (in one case, non-members) flying at sites/areas of sites, which we were currently requested not to used!

NB. A (non-UK) pilot involved in one recent complaint from a farmer had, it turns out also flown with friends illegally in the Class D airspace near Glasgow!

Near Airprox: Forret Hill, Fife.

On Sunday there was almost an ‘Airprox’ when two Grobb aircraft out of Leuchars flew at low level (one BELOW hill top height) only about 60sec after the tandem had landed from a ridge & thermal flight on the SW corner of Forret, if the tandem had still been in the air separation would have been in the region of 20-30 feet verticaly and 50-100ft horizontaly AT BEST… 

As gliders we of course have right of way over powered aircraft BUT as low flight is part of the requirments of fast jet flying and along with the other branches of the armed forces it is the RAF that helps to maintain the freedoms we in the UK enjoy… the club has a ‘letter of agreement’ with RAF Leuchars to provide for safer aviation BOTH for the club and for RAF pilots. This letter states that in the intrests of safety of all pilots, Murray will advise Leuchars Zone, on its designated frequency, PRIOR to gliding commencing and then again at the end of flying for the day.

In addition to this agreement due to its location at times a TRA may be in operation which would make gliding at Forret Hill illegal, generaly due to airshows/’royal’ flights/exercises, at times restrictions may be at very short notice hence radio contact is generaly maintained.

NB. If flying ‘non-radio’ (after ‘opening’ the site) ATC can always contact Murray direct via MSG on the landline or on the mobile if need arises.

The duty controler at Leuchars having been advised of the situation (Near Airprox) has spoken to those concerned, however never forget it is in the intrests of us as PG pilots to do our best to ensure safe seperation from both ‘prop’ and Jet aircraft, this is best done by complying with the arangments that have been in place for the last ten years.

It is important to remember that Forret Hill is almost directly in line with Leuchars main runway and at just over 4 miles distance Jets can quite legaly pass over the hill at very low level easily within 60sec of take off… and ‘wake’ can easily ‘take out’ any paraglider which is remaining out of sight of the jets due to it soaring low on the ‘front’ face of the hill!

 Murray Hay

I spoke to Andy on the Friday evening and we both had the same opinion for Saturday that would see light southerlies. Andy suggested the site at Pilgrims Farm.

Saturday morning saw me take tubes and trains from Stratford with my Advance wing on my back. Good exercise walking down all the steps through Oxford Street Tube Station from the Central Line to the Victoria Line with a large bulky item!

I had a map of the site from www.streetmap.co.uk and picked up a taxi at Oxted, the next station from Woldingham. Heading through the countryside I saw the familiar paragliding shapes and bright coloured flying suites on the side of a small hill on the North Downs.

The site was small by ESP standards. A mix of Club Pilots and Day 1 tasters were on the hill. I spoke to a few pilots and watched as some launched, went into short beats and landed.

I spend the next 5 hours having a great time pulling up, flying short beats, slope landing with the wing overhead and walking back up to start again. At no time did I gather my wing having managed to kite back up or walk backwards with the wing overhead. I find the Advance wing ground handles better than my Nova Aeron.

I was the last to pack up and got a lift back to Lewisham where I connected with the Docklands Light Railway.

I noted the various standards of the pilots. Clearly all the hours spent Ground Handling with PBM/ESP paid off. Only a few pilots had their wings over head and occasionally they looked behind to check on a reverse launch.

I offered some suggestions for improvement to a few who generally agreed with me. A friendly bunch including the Day 1 folks who were enjoying some extended flights to the bottom.

I hope to get back there soon and fly some of the other sites. The other opportunity at Green Dragons is for tow launching. I want to give it a go perhaps next time.

See you on the hill soon!

As always Fly Safe

Duncan