Hang Gliding and Paragliding Volume 44 / Issue 2: February 2014 | Page 11

Making ADS-B compulsory for paragliders and
hang gliders would effectively kill our sports
because it’s probably technically impossible,
and even if it can be done, it would make free
flight prohibitively expensive.
1090Mhz or 978Mhz to other planes.
For effective transmission at those
frequencies the tuning and mounting
of the antenna is critical, and has to be
done by a certified technician, adding
cost, and the need for regular service
inspections.
The cheapest certified system for
free-flyers, if one existed, would probably run to about $4-5000, but so far
no one has managed to solve the technical challenges of how to mount one on
a fold-away paraglider or hang glider,
how to provide them with enough
power in an aircraft that has no engine,
and how to stop them from irradiating
the pilot’s innards.
Happily, because hang gliders and
paragliders are governed by a set of
rules specifically written for aircraft
with no electrical systems, we don