January saw the newly formed 'British Microlight Aircraft Association' (BMAA) publish their official magazine known as 'Flight Line' No 1.
January. No60 Edition of Wings.
19th January. Alfred Williamson died from injuries received from an accident.
Hiway Hang Gliders brought out the Demon. The Demon was the first double surface wing produced by the Hiway Company. Produced in three sizes, 150, 175 and 195 manufactured between 1980 and 1983, the Demon was regarded as an excellent performer which had mellow handling. Its distinguishing feature was the use of a foam insert in the leading edge as opposed to Mylar sheet used by competitors. The medium version had a leading edge of 19ft, a root chord of 8ft 5in, a span 33ft 6in, a nose angle 130 degrees. Its approximate, weight was 72lbs. While the large Demon’s weight was 68lbs.
Birdman Sports brought out the Comanche. The Comanche was a new concept into higher performance wings. This was achieved by creating a much larger double surface area, also the wing was shaped by using pre-formed battens. Unfortunately this was to be the last model produced by Birdman Sports, there is speculation that only four Comanche were ever produced. Its leading edge was 18ft 9in, its span was 32ft 6in, and root chord was 7ft 10in. The nose angle was 1200 degrees and used 14 pre-formed battens.
February. No61 Edition of Wings.
10th February. John King died from injuries received from an accident.
Flexi Form Skysails brought out the Hi Lander which was basically a copy of the La Mouete Atlas. The glider used preformed battens and had approximately 30% double surface. Unlike the Atlas, the Hilander had plug-in cross boom ends rather than a sliding centre box system. Performance was very similar to that of the Atlas although it did not have quite such impressive sink rate.
Airway Gliders joined the manufactures market and came out with the Comet. The Comet was a high quality machine built entirely in Britain to the best engineering and sail making standards under license to Ultralite Products Inc. of America by a new company, Airwave Gliders. The Comet had a perfected floating cross boom system totally enclosed in a highly developed 60% double surface airfoil section and Mylar leading edge. The unbeatable combination of sweet, sensitive handling outstanding performance made the Comet a winner amongst pilots, as proven in the world's toughest competitions. The Comet was produced in three sizes, 135, 165 and 185. The Comet 165’s weight 69 lbs, and the Comet 185 weighed in at 83 lbs.
March. The BMAA publish Flight Line No2.
March. No62 Edition of Wings.
BHGA 1980's latest club list.
Skyhooks Sailwings brought out the Sabre, being their first double surface glider. A notable flight has been achieved on the Sabre by Jim Brown. On the 10th April 81 he flew from Semerwater in the Yorkshire Dales to a landing in Scotland for a distance of 78.1 miles. The large Sabre’s weight was 77lbs and was priced at £943.00.
Southdown Sails joined the growing number of manufacturers list by bring out the Sigma. The Sigma was the first offering from Southdown Sailwings, follows the basic concept of the Chargus Cyclone by appealing to the more experienced pilot for use in competition and cross country flying. The Sigma was a cross tube-less bowsprit design. The machine has a high aspect ratio with a tight sail and drooped tips which lock up at the minimum desired angle of attack to aid pitch stability. The airframe was very simple with little weighty hardware and no non-functional parts. Rigging was straight forward and quick, the longest operation being fitting the flexible battens. The Sigma came in two sizes, 11sq-m and 12sq-m. Sigma 12m had a span 38ft, a sail area of 188sq-ft, its aspect ratio was 7.5, with a nose angle 140 degrees.
April. No 63 Edition of Wings.
Later they also brought out the Lightning. The Lightning was a revolutionary new double surface glider, with superior sink rate, glide and penetration, plus high stability and superb handling. It could be distinguished from other clones of the Comet by its shark fin which stretched from king post to trailing edge. The Lightning came in two sizes, M 170 and L 195 to cover pilot weight ranges from 9 to 15st. The recommended change over weight was 11st.The Lightning 195 had a sail area 195sq-ft, a nose angle 130 degrees, a span of 32ft, and an aspect ratio of 6.3, it’s all up weight was 60lbs.
May. No 64 Edition of Wings.
May. BHGA Release figures showing that in 8 years the sport suffered 30 deaths. 28 in the UK and 2 abroad. details in the May edition of Wings.
May saw the BMAA publish 'Flight Line' No 3.
June. No 65 Edition of Wings.
Don Liddard has a collection of photos taken during 1980.
By this time Everard Cunion was flying a Cherokee with a fabric crosstube fairing.
22nd June. Ernest Warne died from injuries received from an accident.
Enter Solar Wings who brought out the Storm. The Storm was the first offering of Solar Wings, a new company based at Marlborough, Wiltshire. The directors of the company were Mark Southall, Dave Raymond, Cliff Ingram, and Roland Lewis-Evans. The Storm was similar to the Super Scorpion in that it has a deflexerless fully-battened and cambered sail, together with a simple but strong airframe. The set-up method uses plug-in type cross-booms with no loose attachment bolts, the bottom bar being secured by pip pins. Handling was pleasant, although the glider noticeably yaws prior to turning. Performance was on a par with other gliders of fourth generation machines, giving a good slow sink rate and a slightly faster top speed than the looser sailed Super Scorpion. The Storm came in three sizes to suit various pilot weights, although the large one was only recommended for the pilots of over 14 stones. The medium Storm’s Weight was 56lbs and the large weighed in at 65lbs.
July. No 66 Edition of Wings.
June. Romours circulate that some of the staff at Ken Messengers Birdman company have been given a months notice. This was after some of the the original members of staff resigned and left to form their own company known as Solar wings.
19th July. 'Flight International' publishes and article by Ian Parker about the growth of Hang Gling in the UK.
24th July. Philip Penford died from injuries received from an accident.
July saw the BMAA publish 'Flight Line' No 4
Later they brought out the Typhoon it being the first double surface Comet clone produced by Solar Wings, in two sizes. The Typhoon followed the formula fairly closely with preformed battens and four under surface battens. Reflex being retained by a harness of lines attached to the trailing edge from the kingpost. Although the glider handled nicely it was rather heavy. The medium version’s weight was 73lbs, and claimed an L/D 11:1, with approximate 55% double surface. Solar Wings produced and sold 334 Typhoons.
August. No 67 Edition of Wings.
16th August. John Lamb died from injuries received from an accident.
25th August. Robert (Bob) Calvert flew a distance of 127.61Kms, a National and Local record.
September. No 68 Edition of Wings.
September. Saw the BMAA publish 'Flight Line' No 5
September. While flying at the annual hang gliding championships held at Mere Terry Aspinall had an accidental parachute deployment when it fell out of its deployment bag just after takeoff, flying against Judy Leaden during one of the competitions. He was not injured, however it demonstrated to a large audience that parachutes really do work even at only 800ft, it having been a debatable subject for quite some time. There was a noticeable amount of flyers who invested in a parachute after this incident.
October. No 69 Edition of Wings.
November. No 70 Edition of Wings.
November Wings release figures that show there are fewer than 2000 members in the B.H.G.A.
November. Joe Binns has his British National Distance record of 164.85 km which took place on the 25th July 1980 ratified. At the time Joe was flying a Cyclone Mk2 at Cerro Gordo California USA.
November saw the BMAA publish 'Flight Line' No 6.
December. No 71 Edition of Wings.
December. Wings runs an article by Brian Milton the 'Hang Gliding's 10th Birthday'.
Bob Calvert won the 1980 Alvin Russell award.
21st December. David Jones died from injuries received from an accident.
