Frontal collapse, cravatte and line twists

Three incidents share this lesson: the whole front of the wing folds, a wingtip tangles in the lines, or you find yourself twisted under the wing. Cravattes are rare on school wings, frontals usually reopen by themselves, and twists often start with a launch mistake you can prevent. Each has a simple first response¹²³.

They matter because they can escalate. Of 48 German paragliding deaths in 2018–2022, 6 began with a frontal collapse, and in 9 of the collapse deaths the wing went into a cravatte spiral⁴.

Frontal collapse

In a frontal collapse the whole leading edge folds down and under. The wing loses its lift across the front and drops back, and the brakes suddenly go slack in your hands⁵. School wings reopen by themselves: in certification an EN-A wing must recover on its own within 3 s, rocking back less than 45° and diving no more than 30°². As it reopens it surges forward, and a brief brake input as it comes forward stops the surge, as in damping a surge⁶.

The danger is your hands. The DHV warns that many pilots react to the sudden loss of brake pressure by braking deeply, and stall the wing⁵. Afterwards, check that the wing is really flying, not stuck in a parachutal stall⁵⁷.

Figure: A frontal collapse from the side: the front folds under, the brakes go slack and the wing drops back; hands up, it reopens and surges, and a brief brake stops the surge. The second variant shows what deep braking does.

The brakes in a frontal

Everyone forbids deep or held braking, and everyone says release the speed bar at once. They differ on whether a little brake helps⁵:

The positions are closer than they look: a short stab or 15–20 cm5.9–7.9 in is very little brake. So: bar off, hands up, no deep brake, and light symmetric brake only if your manual says so⁵.

Cravatte

A cravatte is a wingtip caught in the lines, usually after a big collapse or a poorly prepared launch. The wing turns towards the caught side, and without a reaction the turn can become a spiral that is hard or impossible to stop⁸. Cravattes are rare on EN-A wings — most years the DHV records no cravatte accident on class A — but in 2024 it recorded two, one fatal¹.

Control your direction first, as for any collapse: weight shift away from the cravatte and careful brake on the open side. Then the manuals list ways to clear it⁸:

1. A firm pull or pump of the brake on the cravatte side, let up at once, while you keep leaning away. A timid pull rarely works.
2. Pulling the stabilo line down until the tip comes free. It is the outermost line, on the B- or C-riser depending on the wing, so find it on yours on the ground.

A full stall also appears in the manuals, but only for pilots trained in it on an SIV course⁸.

Figure: A cravatte on the right tip: hold the heading first, then a firm pull on that brake, then the stabilo line. The second variant shows the moment to stop trying and throw the reserve.

When it becomes a reserve situation

If the wing dives and turns faster, stop trying to clear it. Gin, Nova, Ozone and skywalk all say throw the reserve immediately if the rotation speeds up and you cannot control it, if height runs short, or if you feel overwhelmed. The DHV is blunter: if the wing dives and rotates hard after a big disturbance, it is almost certainly a cravatte, and the reserve must go within 3 s. In one fatal case the spiral was fully developed in under 3 s and fell 150–200 m490–655 ft in four turns and 12 s⁹. Twisted risers often come with it and can block the brakes; only well-trained pilots fly out of that¹⁰.

Line twists

After a wrong turn on a reverse launch, a collapse or a spin, the risers can twist together above your head: line twists. You may face backwards, and the brakes may be crossed or blocked; pilots often pull the wrong one to correct, turning the wing towards the slope¹¹.

Figure: Twisted under a wing that is still flying straight. Steer mainly with your weight, no hard brake until you are untwisted, and untwist the way your instructor teaches.

First keep the wing flying straight and away from the terrain: stop any turn, mainly with weight shift, look where you are going, and fly into open air before you try to sort anything out¹¹. No hard brake until you are untwisted, because the brakes may be crossed or blocked. Many instructors teach turning your body to unwind while the wing flies straight; untwisting is a hands-on drill, so learn your instructor’s method¹¹. Twisted and rotating, and you cannot stop it? That is a reserve situation¹⁰.

Prevention is easier: check the risers are untwisted when you clip in¹², and check your turn direction before every reverse launch³. Pod harnesses and a tight chest strap make twists after a collapse more likely¹³¹⁴.