WINDTECH BANTOO Bedienungsanleitung
BANTOO
manual
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Windtech
w w w . w i n d t e c h . e s
BANTOO
flight manual
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> index
> congratulations –––––––––––––––––––––––––––––– 05
> warning &liability ––––––––––––––––––––––––––– 06
> philosophy of design –––––––––––––––––––––––––– 06
> construction &materials –––––––––––––––––––––– 07
> certification ––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––– 08
> performance –––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––– 08
> flight –––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––– 08
--launch –––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––– 09
> thermal flying ––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––– 10
> flying in turbulence ––––––––––––––––––––––––––– 10
--asymmetric tuck ––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––– 10
--frontal tuck ––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––– 11
--asymmetric stall (spin) –––––––––––––––––––––––––––– 11
--landing –––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––– 11
> weather to fly ––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––– 12
> rapid descent techniques –––––––––––––––––––––– 12
--big ears –––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––– 13
--spiral drive ––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––– 13
--b stall ––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––– 14
> maintenance –––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––– 14
> warranty ––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––– 14
> technical specifications –––––––––––––––––––––––– 15
> line measurements ––––––––––––––––––––––––––– 17
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> congratulations
Congratulations on the purchase of your new BANTOO.
The BANTOO is a tandem wing that has been conceived and designed for both professio-
nal and recreational pilots, suitable of all kinds of flying styles, from a gentle glide down,
to the most ambitious cross country flights. With easy launch characteristics, manoeuvra-
bility and turn ability akin to a solo glider, and superb performance, the bantoo makes it
possible to core the smallest of thermals and climb even in the weakest lift.
We strongly recommend that before you even unfold the BANTOO you carefully read
this manual in order to be aware of any limitations, as well as differnces in performan-
ce, take-off and flight characteristics, landing procedures, emergency situations and
maintenance.
We always appreciate your feedback, so please send us your comments, positive or nega-
tive, regarding to the
Windtech
line. You are the best feedback and support for future
products, and please remember that we are always happy to give you any help &advice.
Best winds
>
Windtech
team
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> warning &liability
This manual has been created to give the pilot help and hints for the correct operation of
this wing. By no means is this a substitute of a training course, or appropriate experien-
ce gained with years and hours of airtime, nor is this manual intended to give pilots kno-
wledge regarding flight safety.
Windtech
assumes that the purchasing pilot has the appropriate pilot's licence, has taken
a training course, and has the ability and enough experience to safely fly the BANTOO.
This manual cannot be used for operational purposes. The flight log ®istration card
must be filled and stamped by the dealer &returned to
Windtech
in order to make a
claim on the guarantee.
The use of this paraglider is entirely at the user's own risk. As with any adventure sport
paragliding is a high risk activity-especially without taking the appropriate precautions-
therefore it must be absolutely understood that
Windtech
&the dealer do not accept
any responsibility for accidents, losses, injuries, direct or indirect damage following the
use or misuse of this product.
> philosophy of design
When
Windtech
decided to make a tandem paraglider, we first established the main cri-
teria that we felt would be the most important to make the perfect tandem wing. The
wing had to be, above all, easy to inflate and launch in all conditions, with excellent han-
dling, high glide performance, and that it would convert energy extremely well to give an
effective flare, for softer landings.
For this we designed a paraglider with 51 cells of variable widths, not all of which have
line attachment points due to the advanced structural relationship of lines/diagonals. In
this way we have considerably reduced parasitic drag produced by the lines whilst at the
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same time endowing the interior of the wing with a higher internal pressure and creating
calculated zones of greater longitudinal tension, very important for increasing resistance
to tucks (above all frontal collapses).
The bantoo’s new profile gives highly elevated security and performance, as well as a
turning ability that is surprisingly efficient.
The end result is a tandem that inflates quickly and easily during launch and is exceptio-
nally stable and solid during the take-off run, giving great protection against having to
abort launches and compromising the safety of yourself and your passenger.
During launch the bantoo gives an exceptional degree of control, allowing the pilot to
easily make precise corrections during the take-off run. Once airborne, the bantoo’s
superb feedback and responsive handling allows one to make the most of even the sma-
llest thermals.
When the time comes to land, the exquisite handling characteristics and precision of the
bantoo serve as another great guarantee of safety since you can first of all guide your-
self more precisely into exactly the spot you wanted to land in, confident that in the final
moment, when you want to flare, you will be able to take advantage of the wings superb
energy conversion, landing both you and your passenger easy and safety each time.
> construction and materials
Our primary concern is always keeping to the highest quality standards of materials and
construction, to impress the pilots and so guarantee our future. For this reason, we never
cut any corners when it comes to building in quality. All of the bantoo’s seams are
internal, to help avoid stitching snags and any kind deterioration that might deform the
aerodynamics of the wing or reduce its longevity.
--cloth
The upper and lower panels are
made with 45 gr. Porcher Marine
Skytex nylon. The ribs are made
with stronger nylon of to prevent
aerofoil deformation, even after
several years of intensive use. Rib
(cell wall) reinforcements are made
of Dacron 310 &180 gr. Line
attachment points are made of
polyester.
--lines
The lines are of the highest quality
and varying diameters, depending
on which area of the glider they
are in, but always of a diameter
greater than a solo glider, capable
of withstanding a force up to eight
times the maximum load. The inner
core is super aramid and the outer
sheath polyester to protect against
general wear and tear and UV.
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The brake lines are made of Dyneema to resist the torsions produced by the pulleys and
the extra tension in turns. The riser maillons have been made with anodised steel
(800daN). The risers themselves have been made with pre-stretched polyester (900 daN).
> certification
The bantoo is certified DHV 1-2 with trimmers for dual (tandem) or single (solo) use,
and is also DHV approved for winch towing. The DHV weight range is 135 – 220kg all-up
(total weight in flight). To see the DHV test results go to the DHV web site at www.dhv.de.
> performance
Always fly a glider that is the correct
size for you. Remember that if you fly
outside of the weight range that the
glider has been designed for, this
could adversely affect the handling,
stability and performance of the gli-
der, and means that the glider is
effectively no longer certified.
If your flying weight is below the sta-
ted minimum, the speed range will
diminish and inflation problems may
appear. Also the handling will degra-
de in turbulent conditions, and it will
sustain collapses more easily.
If your flying weight is above the stipulated weight range, this will result in a higher mini-
mum speed and faster landing speed and the stall speed of the glider will also be higher.
If the glider suffers a collapse, or leaves normal flight configuration, the resulting beha-
viour will be more rapid and violent. As well as this, your sink rate will be higher and you
will find it harder to stay up in light lift.
The bantoo has medium brake resistance (adhering to weight range). The stall is found at
95% of the brake travel and, to force the glider into an in flight full stall (not recommended
on any kind of paraglider), requires almost all the weight of the pilot on the brakes.
The best glide on the bantoo, not taking into consideration any horizontal or vertical
movements of the air, is obtained simply by flying at the glider’s trim speed. That is to say, by
having the trimmers in standard position and flying with no brake or speed system applied.
> flight
Before flying any paraglider, the pilot has to be sure that they are flying a glider that is sui-
table for their level of piloting, evaluating objectively and carefully their true capabilities.
In the case of tandem flying, this is even more important, as one is carrying a passenger
and the price of any error will not only be paid for by the pilot.
Each and every glider has a meticulous checklist passed though our strict quality control
in the factory. This includes line measurement, ground inflation and flight testing.
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Contact your distributor for more information about this, and if your glider has not been
pre-inflated ask them to do so for you. Every glider should be test flown before it is sold.
Note that each glider has a unique sticker attached to the centre cell with the serial num-
ber, type of glider, size and weight range, month and year of fabrication.
We recommend that you inspect the risers, check that the maillons have been correctly
installed and tightened, and make sure that the lines are not tangled.
As for the brakes, there should be around 10cm of excess line above the knot, the length
of both lines should symmetric, and the movement through the pulleys smooth and easy.
We recommend that your first flight on your new glider be on a gentle slope in calm con-
ditions before making any further higher flights, just to check the glider and for you to
get used to flying it.
We also recommended that you use a harness that has an ABS cross strap system and
that maximum width possible for the chest strap is 38 cm between karabiners.
For you own safety, we strongly recommend the use of back protection, helmet and
Windtech
WindSOS reserve.
> launch
If you have already flown a tandem gli-
der before, it is possible that the ban-
too will come up a little more quickly
than the tandem you are used to, and
you will probably need to brake it a lit-
tle when it comes up above your head.
However, with a little practice, you will
not encounter any launch characteris-
tics of the glider that you should not be
able to easily adapt to after your first
flights and you should quickly find the
bantoo extremely easy and efficient
to launch.
If, on the other hand, you have never
flown a tandem before, we strongly
advise that you take a course in tandem
flying, with a qualified and experienced
tandem pilot, before you start flying
with other passengers, as you are
directly responsible for the safety of
your passenger.
The best thing is to make your first flights with large and forgiving take-offs and landing
areas, in optimal weather conditions and a passenger who is also a pilot and so will be
more able to collaborate with you during manoeuvres. In this way, you will adapt rapidly
to the great qualities of the bantoo, without having to preoccupy yourself with too
many new things at once, and so you will be enjoying great flights whilst minimizing the
risk to yourself and your passenger.
It is very important to explain clearly the whole launch process to your passenger, point by
point, and allowing for any eventualities, so that they know exactly what to do. As well as
making the launch process easier for you, this will install confidence in them in your ability.
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Before you take off, lay out the bantoo in a slight arc. Always do all of your pre-flight
checks (lines, maillons, risers, harness buckles, etc). Carefully observe all of the details
that relevant to your launch (tension in the lines, windsock, obstacles, etc).
You mustn't start the run either too slowly, or too fast, but you must always make the
run decisively and assuredly to ensure that the wing carries the weight of you and your
passenger. When the bantoo comes up above your head, give a gentle check on the bra-
kes to stabilize the wing and establish a perfect tension across the glider and lines ready
for the take-off run.
--thermal flying
The best and most interesting
flights, even better when made
with company, are those flying in
thermic conditions, and all pilots
want to experiment and experien-
ce the wonder of flying in ther-
mals. The bantoo is blessed with
superb handling and manoeuvrabi-
lity, which means that you don't
need a lot of brake to turn it, and
by using the outside brake to con-
trol the airspeed of the outer wing,
you can flatten the turn and climb
exceptionally well and efficiently.
Thermic flying conditions can
make flying much more challen-
ging and difficult. Only the most
experienced pilots should fly in
strong thermic conditions. There is
always a degree of associated tur-
bulence in thermic conditions, and
when the pilot encounters turbu-
lence they must fly "actively", with
precise brake input and weight-
shift, ideally with collaboration
from the passenger as well.
In the case of extreme turbulence, so long as you haven't got big-ears in, as a rough guide
fly very actively with around 30 per cent brake.
> flying in turbulence
--asymmetrical tuck / collapse
An asymmetric tuck / collapse is when part (one side) of the wing (say 20% or anything
up to 90% of the span) tucks or collapses, usually induced by turbulence but sometimes
also though poor pilot control in turns and wingovers.
The bantoo is tested and certified to automatically recover without correction by the pilot
with a maximum direction change of 90 degrees of turn, but with the correct input the pilot
can minimise any turning, and height loss, and help the glider recover more quickly.
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