See the URL above. There is so much here that it is hard to pick
out the best parts. But I have chosen a few seen below.

The main recommendations for the 2012 season are: Increase the
qualification level of pilots admitted to Category 1 competitions by adapting
entry requirements to a higher level of current competition experience, and by
requiring pilots to complete training in areas relevant to competition
performance and safety.

In early October 2011, the Paragliding Manufacturers Association (PMA) discussed
the topic of certified vs. uncertified competition wings, and came to the
conclusion that a competition class outside of the EN certification schema is
required. They tasked some of their members with the development of a definition
for a competition class. This work is on-going.

In early November 2011, one manufacturer announced that their competition wing
for the 2012 season had passed EN-D flight tests. They also made it very clear
in their statement that this wing should not be compared with previous EN-D
certified wings, but requires the same piloting skills and proficiency as a
Competition Class glider to be flown safely. Several other manufacturers active
in the competition scene have similar gliders in the process of certification
for the 2012 season.

The entire paragliding competition world is currently in turmoil. We feel our
immediate concern should be how to ensure the 2012 competition season is
successful, with the emphasis on safety, rather than concentrating on long-term
proposals for safety improvements. Any set of safety recommendations that does
not relate to how competitions will be organized in the next one or two years
will be utterly useless. And right now, the questions of whether and how
competitions will be organized, what wings will be flown in which classes, by
what level of pilots, are central to the future of our sport.

The FFVL study mentioned above covers the years 2008 to 2010 and compares
accident and fatality rates of leisure flying (20,000 pilots) with those in
organized, central competitions (1000 pilots) for French pilots. The numbers for
competitions is thought to be complete, since organizers report them To FFVL,
while there is some reason to believe that accidents in leisure flying may be
under-reported. The study does not correct its data for the fact that the
competition pilots are amongst the most active within the pilot population.
Unfortunately, the study does not define what exactly is being counted as an
accident.

The study finds that leisure flying in France has an accident rate of 2%, in
terms of participating pilots; the rate in competitions is 1.3%. The fatality
rate for leisure flying over the observed period lies at 0.04%, or roughly 9 per
year. There were no fatalities in competitions.

Within competitions, 55% of the scored flights were on certified gliders, and
these were responsible for 52% of all accidents within competitions. The
remaining 45% of the scored flights were flown on Open or Competition Class
gliders, and they were responsible for the remaining 48% of all competition
accidents.

The FFVL study also finds that overall, the accident rate in competitions, in
terms of tasks flown, is 0. 2%: About every 500th flight leads to an accident.

Competition gliders to be certified to EN-D will be of significantly higher
performance, and require a significantly higher level of pilot experience, they
should therefore be considered as a separate class to existing EN-D gliders.

There is a widely held view that the EN-D certification class is too broad,
given the range of performance gliders that may now soon be certified in this
class. It is also widely believed, both within the task force and amongst other
experts, including the PMA, that there should be a separate Competition Class
certification. Unfortunately, the EN process is considered to be unsuitable for
such a purpose because it is too slow, evolving on a five-year cycle. Changes
suggested over the last few years will only be incorporated in 2012. The next
round of changes, which could include redefining EN-D and creating a competition
class as part of EN926-2, therefore will not take effect until 2017.

We therefore find ourselves in a deadlock situation: Industry experts such as
testing house and manufacturer representatives are very wary of EN certified
competition wings, and recommend avoiding the certification of such wings at all
cost. But as long as Competition Class wings are suspended from Category 1
events, and effectively banned from most Category 2 competitions as well, EN-D
seems to be the only option for competitions going forward. As long as EN-D
seems to be the only option for competitions, EN-D gliders will be pushed for
high performance, to the limits of EN-D.

There is much more there.