Investigation Report into 2020 paraglider accident in Sai Kung states that warm air and wind to blame

^{Still from video of the incident (see below)}

On 28 April 2020 a serious accident occurred involving a Geronimo² M-27 paraglider colliding with a moving truck during an emergency landing in Sai Kung. The Air Accident Investigation Authority issued an investigation report on Wednesday (5/10), stating that when landing on the scheduled landing site, it may have been affected by the rising warm air, local winds and gusts, so that the pilot lost effective control of the paraglider, and collided with the truck during an emergency landing.

The investigation report pointed out that a paraglider pilot took off from the Ma On Shan Paragliding Activity Area at about 3:00 pm that day and was scheduled to land at Sha Kok Mei, which is outside the boundary of the Ma On Shan Paragliding Activity Area stipulated by the Civil Aviation Department. At 3:12 pm, the police received a report that the pilot injured his leg after colliding with a moving truck near the junction of Tai Mong Tsai Road and Mei Yu Street. He was sent to Tseung Kwan O Hospital for treatment.

The investigation was conducted by an accident investigation team in accordance with international standards established by the International Civil Aviation Organization. The investigation report concluded that the pilot may have lost effective control of the paraglider due to the influence of rising warm air and local winds and gusts when preparing to land on the intended landing site, and collided with the truck during an emergency landing.

A spokesman for the Air Accident Investigation Authority said that the purpose of the investigation is to find out the process and causes of serious accidents, so as to avoid similar incidents from happening again. The investigation team made a safety recommendation to the CAD and paragliding organisations, stating that the CAD should strengthen the “Safety Guidelines for Paragliding Activities” and encourage paraglider pilots to proactively plan landing methods before take-off, including the selection of landing areas and alternate landing areas.