"Flex Wing" Hang gliders

Flex wing hang gliders are designed to be foot launched from a hill or mountain. Most or all of hang gliding was originally done in mountainous terrain. Of course it was first practiced and tested from smaller hills but, as hang glider development progressed the gliders were eventually flown from high mountain slopes and cliffs.

Unfortunately , a foot launch aircraft has it's limitations.. People that live in the areas in the country with no mountains were not able to be involved in the sport. Trying out hang gliding in Wisconsin is one example. Because of this, various types of towing was developed. At first towing was considered quite dangerous but, it too went through its developmental stages and it is now , in many areas, a preferred method getting aloft.

Aero towing and payout winch towing are probably the most two common types of towing. Now powered harnesses are becoming popular in the hang gliding and ultralight community. They are a very versatile unit. They can be used solely for the purpose of getting aloft and then can be shut down for soaring. Or they can be used as a very versatile ultralight that can be packed up and taken anywhere with a car or pickup.
One thing all hang glider pilots have in common is no matter what type of method they use to get high...once there, they all want to achieve hours of powerless soaring.

Payout winch towing


Payout winch towing is another popular method in the flatlands. A spool of tow rope is on a drum fastened to a vehicle. The hang glider is fastened by it's nose to a release and it's control frame is secured on a cradles towards the rear for the vehicle. When the vehicle moves down it's tow road and reaches 30-35 mph the hang glider pilot hits a button to release the nose line. The glider immediately leaves the vehicle and begins to climb. The drum with the tow rope has a built in disc brake system. The rope is payed out as the vehicle moves forward. The rope tension is constant and the disc brake system only allows a certain amount of tension on the tow rope. If the hang glider flies through an updraft during tow , the tow rope just simply pays the line out at a faster rate with the line tension remaining fairly constant. The height achieved from this method of towing depends on how long the tow road is. A longer runway or tow road is necessary for this type of towing.


  Photograghs above were taken in Chelan Washington. A popular hang gliding area for records and long distance flying.
Photogragh below is of  a payout winch system , taken here is Wisconsin