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This paraglider had #t=6. The set w was with an airframe of inflated leading edge and an inflated central keel. The resistive set consisted of an object to mimic a spacecraft.


Many hang gliders are NOT paragliders.

However, many hang gliders ARE paragliders.

A cultish sport group has been desperately trying to disown many paragliders as not paragliders; that game neglects the rich and robust opportunities of unlimited paragliders and unlimited paragliding. The cult says: "Look what I fly; that is a paraglider and all other objects are not paragliders!"  The cult puts a blind eye to single-line #t=1 paragliders, a blind eye to framed paragliders, a blind eye to a vast spectrum of paragliders that have multiple wings in one paraglider, a blind eye to paragliders that have all levels of framing.  The cult wants one corner of paragliders to be all that there is; they have no time to see the other realms of paragliders. That is OK for the cult, but not OK for general aviation, for engineering, for sport with the other sorts of paragliders, for industrial paragliding, etc. 

All paragliders are hang gliders. But not all hang gliders are paragliders.  Some paragliders have one short tether that allows the pilot to manipulate the wing's airframe.

Paragliders may even have fully solid wings while still having the necessary kite line set to the resistive set; the resistive set can be goods or goods and a human or many humans. Gravity pulls the resistive set; tension is set up in the line or tether set; the pull on the wing couples the wind in the gliding flight that results. The united three subassemblies: wings, tethers, resistive set is a gliding kite called paraglider.   The fully soft wing sort is a popular class of wing used in a popular way in sport paragliding; but sport paragliding is fully open to choose wings that are semi-rigid or even fully solid. And the line set may be numbered from one to very many, especially when lines are doubling as wing formers and wing-control lines.

 

 

Wings
PG Activity Sector

One or more wings are used in a paraglider. The choice set is large. Variations in specifics are infinite. A specific wing choice is followed by wear, fatigue, and other changes. Wings may also be in a paraglider's resistive set besides being in the apex wing set. Maintenance. Storage.  Repair. Testing. Porosity.  UV age. Storage methods.  Wings may have any degree of softness or hardness; one sub-class is fully soft canopy; other subclasses include airframed wings from semi-rigid to even fully rigid wings.

  • Evolutes of monoplane wings.
  • Evolutes of wings of sails
  • Evolutes of shaped balloons HTA and LTA
  • Evolutes of wings of thick airfoils.
  • Evolutes of sailwings.
  • Evolutes of Rogallo wing.
  • Evolutes of Barish SSP2S glide wing
  • Evolutes of Domina Jalbert parafoil wing
  • Evolutes of modified parachute wings.
  • Evolutes of vertical axis rotary wings.
  • Evolutes of horizontal axis rotary wings
  • Evolutes of various gliding parachutes
  • Positively inflated wings
  • Ram-air inflated wings
  • Evolutes of inflatable wings (ram-air, ram-air free-open, ram-air capture, ram-air-capture-enhanced pilot pressurizing, ram-air-plus-positive pressurization under control, LEI, LEI+inflated ribs, full pos-inflate, sectored inflation, flight-sector inflation, etc.)
  • Inflatable wings of closed positive pressure elements with pressure limiters and pressure adjusters. Distinguish from ram-air inflatable wings.  Consider the spanwise inflated elements and the special aerodynamics of bumps from spanwise inflated elements.          Distinguish between inflatable rigidizable and those that can be deflated and used over again.          Mars.
  • Woopy (frame and inflation devices) single-tether paraglider         woopy jump Charmey | Woopy 1 | how to "WOOPY"  | Woopy Fly |
  • Evolutes of flat wings.
  • Stuffed wings
  • Puff wings
  • Brownian-motion considerations
  • Evolutes of morphable wings.
  • Evolutes of reflexed airfoils for wings
  • Solid wings
  • Semi-solid wings
  • Skeletonized wings
  • Slotted wings
  • Joined wings
  • Suction-enhanced wings
  • Gustave A. Whitehead 
     
  • Canopy wings in sport paragliding
    • Beginner and Intermediate wings
      Discussion of EN A, B, C, LTF 1, 1-2, 2-rated wings and other wings suitable for beginner and intermediate pilots (e.g. lightweight uncertified wings).
    • Serial and Open Class wings
      Discussion of EN D, LTF 2-3, Competition, and prototype wings suitable for advanced pilots.
    • Wing comparisons - Wing selection
      • Trying to choose between several models?
      • Have you flown several wings and want to compare them?
      •  
    • Build your own wing
       
  • 2011 Ozone EnZo, an EN-D, two-liner hybrid competition gliding kite (paraglider)
  • Ozone R10.2
  • Ozone R11
  • Ozone M4
     
  • Paraglider Manufacturers Association (PMA
    (gliding kite hang gliders with limp-canopies and long bridle/wing-shape-former/control lines with pilot as main resistive-set element
    Paragliders are not limited to what the PMA members make. See HGMA for the paragliders that feature one short bridle line that permits pilot to directly work the framed wing; such gliding-kite paragliders use the default term "hang gliders."
  • Paraglider Manufacturer LIFT
     
  • HGMA (kite hang gliders that generally are with one short bridle line that allows the pilot to directly handle the wing's airframe which often includes the triangle control frame of two downtubes and a base bar (TCF). These hang gliders are paragliders, but use the default term of "hang gliders." 
  • Hang Glider Manufacturer LIFT

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Safety notices regarding wings (this is not complete; check with your manufacturer)