The V Lite and T Lite are proving to be very popular. this type of aircraft is in a real growth phase and we expect this to continue on for the foreseeable future. See some comments from some of our customers who fly the V or T lite: https://www.facebook.com/airborne.microlights.hanggliders.gyrocopters

Trike pilot Dick Smith will probably call to ask when his electric version will be ready. We have not started on that project yet sorry Dick. By the way if you live in Australia buy Dick Smith’s magnificent Australian grown Foods. So far Dick Smith foods have given $6million dollars to charity. There is a big social media drive behind this company, be a part of it!

Check out the website: http://www.dicksmithfoods.com.au/ and share it.

 Airborne started trading in 1983. Today marks 30 amazing years we have been in the flying business.

The F2-160 is now in production. The smaller brother of the popular F2-190 the F2-160 has superb handling and the exceptional finish that we strive for at Airborne. The sail area is 160 sq ft (149 sq meter) and weighs in at only 19kg (42 pound). The recommended pilot hook in weight (includes equipment) is 50-90kg (110-198 pound).   Vist www.airborne.com.au for more information.

William Olive known to his mates and others as Billo has been a consistant visitor to the Gulf of Carpentaria. The attraction to this remote area at the top end of Australia has mainly been the incredible wave cloud phenomena named the “Morning Glory”. The series of roll clouds form when moisture from onshore seabreezes is evident. The rolling wave can be up to 1000 kms(620mi) long. The wave continues it’s journey inland producing lift in front of the cloud. This lift allows pilot’s of all sorts of aircraft the opportunity to “surf” the cloud for miles inland until it finally dissipates. The cloud base is usually only 100 – 200 metres (330-660 ft) high and moves at speeds up to 60 kms (37mi) per hour.

Billo with his crew Brett Paull XT 582 and Cruze wing was able to climb up to the cloud and switch off the engine and soar to the world record now at 48.4 Km 

Whether it’s the V-Lite with the F2T wing or the T-Lite with the higher performance Core wing it would be difficult to find a better handling trike. Both machines powered either by the Polini two stoke or the Bailey four stoke engine are a dream to fly. They are also good fun to soar with the engine off in thermal lift.

Famous Australian aviator and avid microlight pilot Dick Smith has been on our case to build him an electric powered V-Lite. We have slowly been researching the viability of the project and you may well see an electric version in 2013.

 On the 12/12/2012 Allan McMillan flew his 3 year old Sting 3 168 from Mount Borah, Manilla (NSW Australia) to Walgett with a dog leg. Interesting to see Allan and his Airborne Sting 3 are coming 3rd in the International contest for hangliders distance comp and 1st in the Australian distance comp. The last time any one flew further than him from Mt Borah that has uploaded a track log was in 2007 in a topless glider, the pilot an Austrian.

You can see Allan’s tracklog here:
http://www.xcontest.org/australia/flights/detail:allanmcmillan/12.12.2012/01:12

It shows a distance of 254.46 kms (158 miles) That’s a great effort on any glider. To do it on a Sting – Awesome!
Congratulations Allan

The Airborne jacket was won by Rodrigo Brigida of Sao Paulo Brazil. All the people that have visited the Airborne facebook pages and liked us went into the draw. The names were printed off and made into a dart board, which let us throw a dart to pick the winner.

We plan to do the same again in June, so if you want to be in the draw you need to like us on facebook and your name will be added to the dart board. The jacket shown in the above has a large embroidered logo on the back and a smaller one on the front. They can be worn for flying and are stylish enough to wear each day.  So for the latest up to date news click on the facebook link on our website and it will take you to the page. Generally the facebook page has new posts at least two times per week. 

 The first shipment of Magni Gyrocopters will arrive at Airborne sometime in January. The shipment includes 2 x M24 Orions and 1 x M16. There is one extra space in the container and we believe that slot will be taken shortly.  Our website has been updated to include the Magni range, which includes their open air tandem gyro’s through to the sporty looking fully enclosed M24 Orion pictured. Magni is a world leader in gyroplane design and manufactures it’s range to an extremely high standard. The Orion was the first enclosed Gyro to acheive UK certification as we were the first OS ready to fly (not kit) microight to achieive section S certification in the UK.
We will be working close with the Magni factory in Italy to ensure we are able to offer good service for this new Airborne product. We have enlisted the help of some local gyro experts to so we can gain the required knowledge. Have a look at our web site https://www.airborne.com.au/

Next year we will have 3 Airborne pilots representing the Australian team in the Hang gliding Worlds. The National ladder position http://thebombout.com/wp-content/uploads/ladders/NationalLadder.htm of these pilots is impressive: Rohan Holkamp in 1st, Scott Barrett in 2nd and Adam Stevens in 4th. Cameron Tunbridge is in 10th place on the ladder.  So 4 gliders in the top 10 in a field dominated by Moyes gliders. Looking at past results, the 2012 Pre-Worlds at Forbes was won by Rohan Hotkamp on the Rev 13.5, Scott Barrett came in 3rd in the same comp with Adam Stevens in 4th place. The results say something for the excellent performance of the Rev. It could be argued it has been the best performing glider in Australia this year.

The Rev uses a unique camber control system not found on any other glider. The Camber Control System (CCS) is a tensioning system used to control the airfoil from distorting upwards at high speeds. The CCS is activated when the VG approaches the full on setting and maintains a precise airfoil shape. The control of the airfoil results in a reduction in profile drag. The distortion of the upper surface at high speeds has been well documented on other gliders and the drag penalty is obvious. More details on the Rev can be found at: https://www.airborne.com.au/pages/hg_rev.php