Press page

Paragliding, speedflying, and hang gliding are colorful adventure sports that are often featured in national and international media.

We have many professional members who can be sources, or be a part of events, stories, or media opportunities. For media inquiries please contact the USHPA Office at [email protected].

Featured content

New York Times, A Record Ride on the Texas Wind - "To set a hang gliding distance record, Jonny Durand and Dustin Martin set out last July from Zapata, Tex. and headed north as far as the warm winds would take them."

ABC News, Parahawking Adventure in Nepal - ABC's Ginger Zee gets the thrill of a lifetime when she feeds vultures while paragliding.

Outside Magazine, Paragliding British Columbia - "Last spring, high-fliers Will Gadd and Gavin McClurg pulled off one of the most ambitious trips ever attempted: 385 miles down the jagged, frozen, potentially deadly spine of the Canadian Rockies." [Note: Will and Gavin were finalists for National Geographic's 2015 Adventurer of the Year.]

ABC News/Nightline, Ultimate Descent: Paragliding Off Everest - Sanobabu Sunuwar and Lakpa Tshiri Sherpa win National Geographic's 2012 Adventurers of the Year award for their journey from the top of Mt. Everest to sea level at the Indian Ocean.

Background

Hang gliding, paragliding, and speedflying are a combination of adventure sport and aviation. Pilots fly light and non-motorized foot-launch aircraft both recreationally and competitively. Hang gliding pilots hang prone in a harness, suspended from the airframe, and exercise control by shifting their body weight. Most modern hang gliders are made of an aluminum alloy frame covered with synthetic sailcloth to form a wing. Paragliding and speedflying pilots fly lightweight aircraft that have no rigid primary structure and resemble elliptical parachutes. The pilot sits in a harness suspended below a fabric wing that is comprised of a large number of interconnected baffled cells. Hang gliders and paragliders can travel hundreds of miles on rising columns of air, called thermals, soar for hours in the wind pushed upward by coastal terrain, or simply fly down from a mountain in calm, still, air. Speedflying pilots focus on quick flight while staying close to terrain. 

ABOUT USHPA

The United States Hang Gliding and Paragliding Association (USHPA) is a non-profit organization whose purpose is to support sport flying in foot-launchable, unpowered soaring aircraft. USHPA develops, standardizes, and administers programs that foster and promote practices for safe flying. USHPA maintains a working relationship with the FAA and other regulatory organizations to ensure continued access to airspace. The organization also maintains relationships with public and private entities to promote the procurement and maintenance of flying sites.

USHPA is headquartered in Colorado Springs, Colorado. For more information on hang gliding and paragliding, go to www.ushpa.org.