Offpiste Discovery

Last updated

Discovery
Role Hang glider
National origin United Kingdom
Manufacturer Offpiste Aviation Limited
Designer Bill Pain
Status Production completed
Produced mid-2000s
Unit cost
£2,800 (Discovery 160, 2004)

The Offpiste Discovery is a series of British high-wing, single or two-place, hang gliders that were designed by Bill Pain and produced by Colin Lark's company Offpiste Aviation Limited (Off The Beaten Track) of Dursley, Gloucestershire. Now out of production, when it was available the series of aircraft were supplied complete and ready-to-fly. [1] [2]

United Kingdom Country in Europe

The United Kingdom (UK), officially the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, is a sovereign country located off the north-western coast of the European mainland. The United Kingdom includes the island of Great Britain, the north-eastern part of the island of Ireland, and many smaller islands. Northern Ireland is the only part of the United Kingdom that shares a land border with another sovereign state, the Republic of Ireland. Apart from this land border, the United Kingdom is surrounded by the Atlantic Ocean, with the North Sea to the east, the English Channel to the south and the Celtic Sea to the south-west, giving it the 12th-longest coastline in the world. The Irish Sea lies between Great Britain and Ireland. With an area of 242,500 square kilometres (93,600 sq mi), the United Kingdom is the 78th-largest sovereign state in the world. It is also the 22nd-most populous country, with an estimated 66.0 million inhabitants in 2017.

Dursley town and civil parish in southern Gloucestershire, England

Dursley is a market town and civil parish in southern Gloucestershire, England, situated almost equidistantly between the cities of Bristol and Gloucester. It is under the northeast flank of Stinchcombe Hill, and about 3 3⁄4 miles (6.0 km) southeast of the River Severn. The town is adjacent to Cam which, though a village, is a slightly larger community in its own right.

Contents

Design and development

The Discovery series was designed as a Super Floater glider, for fun, local flying and an emphasis on lightness of weight, ease of rigging and simple handling requirements. It is made from aluminum tubing, with the single-surface wing covered in Dacron sailcloth. All models were British Hang Gliding and Paragliding Association certified. [1]

British Hang Gliding and Paragliding Association

The British Hang Gliding and Paragliding Association (BHPA), based in Leicester, is the governing body in the UK for hang gliding and paragliding.

The series have been frequently used in conjunction with a powered harness, as powered hang gliders. [1]

Powered hang glider

A foot-launched powered hang glider (FLPHG), also called powered harness, nanolight, or hangmotor, is a powered hang glider harness with a motor and propeller in pusher configuration. An ordinary hang glider is used for its wing and control frame, and the pilot can foot-launch from a hill or from flat ground, needing a length of about a football field to get airborne, or much less if there is an oncoming breeze and no obstacles.

By the mid-2000s the series had become the best-selling hang gliders in the UK. [3]

Variants

Discovery 160
Small-sized model for lighter pilots. Its 9.14 m (30.0 ft) span wing is cable braced from a single kingpost. The nose angle is 125°, wing area is 14.8 m2 (159 sq ft) and the aspect ratio is 5.6:1. The pilot hook-in weight range is 55 to 89 kg (121 to 196 lb). [1]
Discovery 195
Large-sized model for heavier pilots. Its 10.36 m (34.0 ft) span wing is cable braced from a single kingpost. The nose angle is 125°, wing area is 18.1 m2 (195 sq ft) and the aspect ratio is 5.6:1. The pilot hook-in weight range is 66 to 102 kg (146 to 225 lb). [1]
Discovery 195S
Reinforced 195 model for much heavier pilots. Its 10.36 m (34.0 ft) span wing is cable braced from a single kingpost. The nose angle is 125°, wing area is 18.1 m2 (195 sq ft) and the aspect ratio is 5.6:1. The pilot hook-in weight range is 85 to 135 kg (187 to 298 lb). [1]
Discovery Bi 210
Model for dual use. Its 10.7 m (35.1 ft) span wing is cable braced from a single kingpost. The nose angle is 125°, wing area is 19.6 m2 (211 sq ft) and the aspect ratio is 5.6:1. The pilot hook-in weight range is 114 to 178 kg (251 to 392 lb). [1]

Specifications (Discovery 160)

Data from Bertrand [1]

General characteristics

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References

  1. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 Bertrand, Noel; Rene Coulon; et al: World Directory of Leisure Aviation 2003-04, page 47. Pagefast Ltd, Lancaster OK, 2003. ISSN   1368-485X
  2. ↑ "Skyfloating, Colin Lark and the Discovery". skyfloating.com. Archived from the original on 6 February 2005. Retrieved 20 February 2016.
  3. ↑ "About Offpiste Aviation Ltd". skyfloating.com. Archived from the original on 12 February 2002. Retrieved 20 February 2016.
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