We finally had the chance to fly the Action GT, possibly the most emblematic glider of the new generation of reflex wings and the latest design from Mike Campbell-Jones, considered the “father” of this technology. Its predecessor, the Action, triggered important changes in the market of paramotor gliders proving the advantages of speed and stability of this type of profiles applied to paragliders. Following the success of the Action, and later of the Revolution –Paramania's all round model for the big public-, many manufacturers have introduced reflex profiles or more timidly "semi-reflex" models in their ranges of paragliders for use under power.
The Action GT is a glider aimed at experienced and competition pilots, and conceived as a dual model, that is to say, to be flown either in free flight or with a paramotor - although in this last modality is where we will find its best virtues.

Construction and Finishes


The Action GT shows superb finishes; the glider is a robust construction with reinforced seams both in the leading and the trailing edges. Some of the cells are closed and part of the profiles is made of Dacron, which helps to keep the form - something specially useful when you go fast (almost always...). However, it is important to take good care of the leading edge and fold the Action GT cell by cell.

The GT has load bearing tapes between the line attachment points where there is higher structural tension. The lines are distributed in 2 cascades and three lines per riser. The lines are thick and very strong.

To launch the Action GT you need to push the risers until the glider is totally above your head on the vertical, even slightly ahead, specially if we have the trimmers in a slow-flight mode.

Security
After more than 20 flight hours with different sizes of this paraglider I can assure that the Action GT is up to its promises, it's an exceptional glider for PPG: fast, solid and with a very high performance in balance with a high security level. Nevertheless, this wing is not for everyone; it requires experience and discernment. Indeed, when we release the reflex it's possible to fly in conditions otherwise impossible: navigating in turbulence or high winds, dealing with strong thermals, crossing rotors... An experienced pilot will be able to read the conditions and put his own limits in order to avoid risks, as sometimes we pilots forget that we fly with just a piece of inflated cloth above our heads...

During the flights I did with the Action GT testing different flight configurations I never had any collapse. In thermal flying, for example, I noticed that the wing does not collapse but it may lose pressure causing the wingtip to retract in accordion style but quickly gaining the inner pressure back. This is an interesting characteristic because with a normal collapse there's usually a rotation tendency while in this case the tendency is to fall down some meters but without varying the course. The worse experienced I had was when I attempted to land next to El Yelmo Festival's premises, so as not to walk 300m pushing my paratrike. The wind was catabatic and turbulent but I went all the same; when I was a few meters from the ground the air was very rough and the glider suffered a few losses of pressure which I had to compensate as I was flying in no-reflex mode, until I hit the ground from 2 meters! The consequence: a broken propeller, and a lesson learnt.

The Action GT and my experience with paratrike
The Action GT is a more than interesting choice for Paratrike flying. The 28 size has a weight range of 85 to 175 kg, so even with the fuel tank full I am within reasonable margins of weight. (With the size 23 the excess weight did not help to add speed and I needed much more thrust). The glider's performance is good both in climb rate (between 1,75 and 2m/s) and flying at high speeds. If I step on the speedbar I can easily exceed 60km/h without losing height, and I can even climb little by little.

About piloting, the Action GT 28 is dynamic but not nervous; the size 23 is more acrobatic and you need to be more precise in the handling, specially if you are high on the weight (as it was in my case, when I tried it).
To get the best performance from a glider like this in paratrike flight it's necessary to have more than enough power, but this usually has associated a high torque effect. Fortunately, with the Action GT you hardly notice it! This was one of the characteristics that made me choose this paraglider to compete at the Spanish Nationals 2007 (where I got the 1st place in the paratrike class) and also for the Worlds of China in September, since it offers a great manoeuvrability in both the right and the left turns, which is crucial for ground tasks like the Cloverleaf or the Japanese Slalom.

Another thing I wanted was a bigger wing that would give me better results in limited-fuel tasks of distance and endurance; well, the GT has behaved great so far, with performance close to a free flight glider. I also liked the wingtip steering toggles, with which I can keep the course with comfort and little effort; but overall I liked the rock-solid glider that is the Action GT when the trimmers are released, something that lets me cruise at high speeds even in rough air. (*I must note that I always keep a safe altitude and that I've just installed a Cylindricone pneumatic deployment system for the rescue parachute).

When I tested the Action GT 28 it took me only one flight to decide it would be my glider, and my only concern is: will there ever be a version of 29 or 30m2 with unsheathed lines...?

*The Action GT Manual is very complete and offers lots of useful information. You can download it here.

Color schemes

The GT has a larger centre cell whose main characteristic is the "nose" that shows by the leading edge. This feature together with a long central chord helps give more pressure to the centre of the wing and makes the glider stiffer despite its high aspect ratio, according to Paramania. Also, this larger central section improves the directional stability and reduces induced drag. Besides, the lines from both sides are linked on the centre to equalize the transference of weight, which effect is to transfer the pressure on the risers more symmetrically to the wing, thus improving the inflation behaviour of the glider.

Inflation and takeoff

You'll need a slight adaptation to this type of gliders as they don't come up as lightly as a free flight wing; we'll have to push the risers with constant pressure until the canopy is above us, with no fear of overshoot.


With wind we can do a reverse inflation with the Paratrike, and then turn around and take off. It needs some practice and to develop sensitivity for handling the glider on the ground.

Before launch it is important to check the trimmers and verify that they are perfectly symmetrical, because small variations in the trimming can cause the glider to come up unevenly making things more complicated. With some wind the inflation is quite easy; in no wind we'll have to prepare the glider carefully and make sure it is symmetrically positioned against the wind and the pilot. We can set the trimmers to minimum speed for the takeoff but then we'll have to keep the pressure on the risers a bit longer. Once we have the glider above us we'll have to do a good run to make it fly; when we have gained good speed it's best to give a pull on the brakes to help the glider lift and take off, otherwise the run can be quite long.

Handling and turns
As I said previously, the long trimmer system clearly defines the flight personality of the Action GT. From the minimum speed to a bit over the neutral position, the handling can be very dynamic: the glider makes good turns and at high speeds; however, for its high aspect ratio and velocity the margins for manoeuvres are wider than for free flight gliders.

For thermalling, the best is to set the trimmers to the minimum speed, and we'll virtually have a free flight glider. It can do flat turns, and if you learn to take the best of it you'll be surprised to stay high even in light thermic conditions. If the thermals are strong and turbulent you can even release some reflex, just enough to keep the handling on the brakes but enjoying increased stability.

The usable brake travel is nearly 30 cm and the brakes have pressure: if you spend a while turning in thermals your arms may get a little tired.

Once the trimmers are off, you handle the glider through the wingtip line, although if you've chosen this setting there is little to handle because you're probably cruising from point A to point B, so you'll only need to do small corrections on the course.

The speed system of this glider is long and it needs to be well adjusted in order to obtain top speeds (+65Km/h).

+Info: www.flyparamania.com

*Read other reviews by Theflyingeye

Glider tested by Daniel Crespo
Daniel is a paraglider and powered-paraglider competition pilot, Spanish Champion 2007 in PL1 - paratrike.

To know more about him, visit his blog (in Spanish):