Questions by: Jose Ortega, 

When was the Start of the Reflex wing idea?

Conception and design of the very first Reflex wing for powered flight (paramotoring) began in 1994. The idea, conceived by british designer Mike Campbell-Jones, was developed with funding from Paramania Ltd and with aid from the UK's DTI S.M.A.R.T award for innovation. In 1996 the first production wings were produced in two sizes 27m and 28m. Both these wings were certified under BCAR section 'S' as microlights. The Reflex was born!

In 1997 the Reflex was certified a 'Standard' rating by AFNOR. The wing competed in the World Air Games in Turkey – Flown by its designer Mike Cambell-Jones, where it gained its reputation for incredible stability and speed.
At the same time, manufacturing was moved from Mike's place in the UK out to a small manufacturing plant in Poland. Over the next few years 300 wings were sold including the Reflex MK2 version. Mike then fell ill with cancel which he was lucky to have survived and was cleared of a few years after, feeling healthy and fit he was back on his feet two years later and back on the drawing board!
Competition flying continued to help development of the reflex section with a number of world class paramotor pilots helping to test and fly his prototypes. In 2002 Paramania launched a high performance version of the Reflex wing named the Action – It's success in competitions showed clearly the advantages of the reflex wing section technology for speed, safety and efficiency.

2005 – In Time for realease of the next generation Reflex wing (Revolution and Action GT) and In search of higher quality manufacturing Paramania formed a strong relationship with Korean based company Gin Gliders and now share their manufacturing facilities together along with Gin’s world leading quality.

How many wings do Paramania produce each year?

Paramania currently produces around 1000 wings a year – the GoFly, Revolution, Fusion, Action GT & Taxi tandem .

How long does it take to develop a new wing?

It takes about 12 months to develop a new model; this includes conception, prototyping and testing. However actual design concepts can take much longer.

How long does it take to manufacture one wing?

Depending on the model, between 60-100 hrs of labour to produce one wing.

Why a specific Paramotor wing?

It is only natural that a specific type of wing is desirable for powered use. The type of flight and load requirements are so different that anything less would be a compromise. Below are two clear examples from aviation history.


A hang glider for free-flight (gliding flight) compared with one for a Microlight
A glider (sailplane) compared to a powered aircraft.

What are the different requirements between a wing designed for paragliding and one designed for powered flight?

In general – For free flight (gliding)
A wing made for free-flight needs to be sensitive to rising air currents. So has less pitch stability, which helps a pilot feel the air more. It must turn very flat and be spirally neutral, to be efficient whilst using thermal cores. It needs the best sink rate possible, to help it rise with the air currents. Pilots nearly always have their hands in the control handles as they need to fly actively. The wing may also be made of a lighter construction as it has fewer loads and line drag is more important so thinner lines are used. It must also be lighter for carrying up mountains to a take off, where thermals and lift are more abundant.

For powered flight:
A wing made for power needs good directional and pitch stability. It has to absorb a variable power source of thrust and torque mounted on the pilot below the wing. The type of flying is very different i.e. Going places between A & B whilst navigating and taking photos etc. The pilot flies usually with hands off the controls. More stability at speed means it can cut through turbulence and arrive against varying head winds and weather. Sink rate and flat handling are considered less important than good speed and stability. For safety the handling also needs to be light and responsive at lower speeds but much less so when going faster. The construction is heavier to take the extra loads. Wings have wider ranges of weight and safe speed.

Summary:
Despite the opposing requirements there are many developments common to both. New technological evolutions are happening all the time. We are now starting to see some powered wings that have a good sink rate and flatter handling and free-flight (gliding) wings that are definitely becoming more stable at speed. The reflex wing section is a key facture to some of these new and exciting changes. 

What is a reflex profile?

See above diagrams, “A Reflex wing section” - A wing section that has an elevator built into its shaping, so is auto-stable and pitch positive.

What are the advantages and disadvantages?

Faster more stable, good glide at speed, but usually a slightly higher sink rate.
Update 2009: But now with the latest models such as the Fusion sink rate is no longer an issue, you decide what sink rate yo want on the trimmers. From full slow like a modern paraglider to full fast like out other full Reflex models!)

Do you think it possible to fly at 80km/h and still be foot launch?

Soon, I think. Already, with both the Revolution and Action GT, we have been able to achieve a much wider speed range by exploring ways of slowing the wings down for better sink rate and an easier take off. Early development of this took place with the Reflex MK2 and the slow bar system.
Opposed to rigid winged aircraft, a Para-foil type wing has a huge potential advantage for speed range, because it can change its shape so easily, like a bird. We already have wings that can fly nearly 4 1/2 times their stall speed (only swing wing military jets can do this) - Add to this, the developments of lighter more powerful engines – so less weight and shorter take offs – However there will always be an upper limit of X and wheels will carry on forward from there.
(Update 2010: Our tandem TAXI has been recorded at full speed 80kph+ on a pl2 trike!)

Anything thats not possible?

Everything is possible if there is a need or a want – just a question of waiting for the correct marriage of technology to have the key to unlock the door, that and a total belief in the possible.
- Philosophy statement (Mike Campbell-Jones)

What projects for the future?

Apart from new wings for new applications (Heavy trikes etc), I am currently developing the TEC (Total Energy Construction) system for making wings – Also a new Para foil ULM and an unmanned craft.
Both exploring the possibilities of much heavier aircraft that use similar soft wing technology.
The rest is naturally TOP SECRET as already there are way too many competitive designers and plagiarists out there.  So I don’t wish to give too much away ;-)

Note - Click Play button to begin demonstration