Engine failure followed by face plant

Spring 2010 is finally here. Angelo and I planned to fly from Haddam Meadows down to Goodspeed Airport to meet friends. A little ways out from Haddam, a bolt holding my redive (and engine( on sheared; I shut down the engin and turned back to the field. A good tailwind meant no problem reaching the field, but a "nonpuff" caught me as I flared and I dropped it in for a face plant. Oh well, better luck next time.

Category:

Sports

Tags:

• paramotor
• PPG
• crash
• flying
• flight
• walkerjet
• ultralight

[nerblebun]

@ericharma I guess you haven't seen the video of the 9 year old launching a Flat -Top with no problem.Or the fourteen year old GIRL launching her Flat-Top. Maybe you should bulk up with a bowl of Wheaties.

[ppger]

Parafan Man, Great piloting and vidoe. Glad the unit not too damaged and gladder still you weren't either. Nice landing the Chef!

[ericharma]

Red Bull flys them because FT gives them free ones. The top Red Bull pilot Chris Santacrose recently hurt himself bad on a Flat Top & that guy never got hurt on his other ppg. No cage design of any ppg will prevent you from getting hurt. The only thing that keeps a pilot safe is proper training & smart flying. I now fly the NIRVANA & its 15 years ahead of the FT in design, comfort, transportability, reliability, etc...Go to NIRVANAS website for what they offer

[ericharma]

Ive owned the Flat Top...its not a bad unit probably the second or 3rd best paramotor out there. It actually is 15lbs heavier than most paramotors out there & its such a large awkward designed unit w/ the engine offset way back which makes it feel even heavier. Also its so big its difficult to transport. Other units break down into small pieces in a few minutes for ez transport..

[dovesmagic]

eg1, I hadn't done much research on the Walkerjet and I'm happy see more manufactures making their units safer.

ericharma, I've ton TONS of research about the Flat Top and have talked to a lot of owners of them and haven't heard a single negative comment. From what I hear, they are lightweight, and very easy to launch. In addition, they are very safe. That's why the Red Bull Air Force uses these paramotors exclusively.

[ericharma]

stay away from the Flat Top..its so heavy & awkward which will cause you more problems w/ take offs & landings....also you can still easilly hit your face w/ their faceplant bars ....

[ericharma]

Glad you had some altitiude...Ive owned / flown everything out there..I now fly the NIRVANA paramotor..Amazing to say the least. I was tired of heavy ,vibrating, unreliable paramotors that needed constant work. Ivve got friends w/ 700+ hours on their NIRVANAS w/ zero mechanical problems. They are light w/ huge power and minimal vibration. Check out the NIRVANA website...No other PPG even comes close....

[444paraflyer]

I love your "sound effects".

[eg1]

This frame is based on the walkerjet which has a frame identical to the flat top. The bar which the risers attach to "faceplant bars" are identical

[dovesmagic]

That paramotor ought to have faceplant bars like the Flat Top, so you don't end up hurting yourself. I wonder if there is a way to modify the one you have already?