Powered Parachutes

Making Sense of Powered Parachutes

Anyone, except the agoraphobics maybe, have at sometime dreamt of flying. A few of us have followed this dream only to find out that flying an airplane is more like driving a truck.

However, other people sought other avenues of flying like skydiving and parachuting. Well if you are still contemplating this dream, you might consider driving a car in the sky.

Powered parachute is more like maneuvering a family car above the land, only you have flexible wings. It is a recreational activity which combines parachute wing technology with an engine.

Advantages of getting a powered parachute:

It requires no license – You surely have to train for several hours on how to operate this kind of parachute but you don't have to earn a considerable amount of experience or pass a number of qualifications before you are able to drive one like this. In fact, there is no need to get a pilot's license since this machine is classified as an ultra light vehicle.

It is relatively inexpensive – When compared to jets or airplanes, it is doubtless that this type of parachute is a lot more inexpensive. The price of a parachute like this usually runs around the price of family car. The regular maintenance is such that you would not pay more than $1,000 a year. Also, it runs on premium auto oil.

It is convenient – Unlike other powered aircrafts, this parachute does not need a runway to take off from or to land on, and a considerable stretch of smooth field will do.

It is easy to operate – Its popularity could be largely attributed to how easy it could be operated. If you are a car driver, chances are you could learn to drive this one too.

It is safe – The sports type of parachuting, while categorized as an extreme sport, does not necessarily mean that it has high injury or fatality rate. In fact, there are only around 30 plus people in every 100,000 who die in this type of sports. The same is true when in powered parachuting. In fact, this is the safest aircraft used in recreation available.

The deployment of the canopy is not really a problem since the aircraft would not leave the ground if this does not open, the aircraft does not stall and it is fairly stable due to the pendulum effect of the hanging cart. In case the engine dies, the aircraft was designed to glide safely to the ground.

It provides the experience of flying – Not everyone has the money to rent his private jet or to fly his own airplane but anyone who has the capacity to buy a second or a third car could buy an aircraft that will let him explore the sky. The handler can fly as high as the engine allows and as low as "just above the ground".

You could fly at around 10,000 ft and glide down or just hover around the treetops to indulge in the view down below. Top this with the constant speed of 30 mph which will allow you to enjoy the experience without worrying too much on whether you are going too fast or too slow.

Power parachutes have their inherent advantages which were designed exactly for people who once dreamt of flying. If you can't tolerate the adrenaline rush of sky diving or BASE jumping, perhaps this recreational aircraft could be a good choice for you.