10 years ago
Austria's well know paragliding spot, Gerlitzen has been a center of acro paragliding since the birth of the sport. Some of the best acro pilots, like Xandi Meschu, Pal Takats or Marving Ogger and many others have been training here in the safe environment what the Ossiache See offers. The site grew as our sport did in the last ten years, witnessing more and more pilots wanting to train acrobatics over water. Most of the pilots are from Austria, Germany or the neighboring countries, but foreign pilots are present from the early days, and they are coming from all over Europe and as far as North America, New Zealand or Columbia. This mixture has formed into a nice and friendly international community of acro pilots.
In the last few years the number of water landings have been increased significantly, giving a lot of work to the lakes Water Rescue team. The local authorities weren't so happy about the water landings, and were already asking the local pilots for a solution to lower the number of water landings. Unfortunatly in July a young Austrian pilot killed himself while doing acro, and crashed into the lake in front of the swimmers. This was the first fatal acro accident in Gerlitzen, and it was obvious that the authorities will have a reaction to this... and they had a very bad reaction.
About a week after the accident they caught a Korean pilot after a water landing and fined him for 320 euro. Two days later they caught a Bulgarian pilot, Veso for landing in the camp site, also 300 euro. Few days has passed, and two French pilots have been caught and fined for 300 euro again! The reason was always the absence of valid flight documents, but all these pilots had valid national licenses from their own countries, IPPI cards, third party liability insurances. The police officers were not so respectful with pilots, disrespecting their equipment, scaring them to pay by showing the handcuffs, confiscate the glider, or having very intolerant comments on them. The police have been seen since checking documents of pilots at the landing field.
Situation and facts:
Austrian law only allows paragliding flights with valid Austrian, German or Swiss licence, and a flightbook on board!
Many of us are flying in Austria for 10 years, and never heard of this rule, nor never seen any penalties payed for this reason. This was never announced, nor any warning before the police has started to penalize foreigners!
The Austrian Aeroclub (http://www.aeroclub.at/) has a website only in German language, with very limited information. No English information, and nothing about the fact that foreigners are illegal to fly in Austria.
To obtain an Austrian license, you have two options:
1. Do a course with a flight school, which means you have to do a (shortend) paragliding course with a written exam in German language and a flight test.
2. Submit your national documents, and have them converted into an Austrian licence. This has no precedence!
There is no way to get a visitor pilots license or anything similar.
Read more information from Benedikt Skok.
According to the FAI website, IPPI card is accepted in Austria. Very interestingly the page has been updated yesterday (August 8, 2013), and now it still can be understood as they accept IPPI cards, it states that new rules will come out in October 2013. For curiosity, here is the text from before the change.
Landing rules have been changed in the last days. Pilots have to land 50 meters away from the road. Who know the places, can tell that this is dangerous in strong wind, because of rotor from the trees.
It is not allowed to land in the main camping and beach (strandbad). Anyone who lands there will be handed over to the police, and probably pay a fine. The owners never liked paragliders landing there, not even in emergency situations. We need to respect their private property, so please not land there in any circumstances. See their notes (only in german).
There is no offical water rescue. There is a rescue team on the lake, who are all volunteers, and their job would not be to fish out paraglider pilots. The boat is not even on the lake all the times, or maybe on the other end, and than it takes longer time from them to arrive. To honor their job, one can buy a sticker for 20EUR, which is a donation for the rescue team, and not a payment for a service which unfortunately most pilots seem to think it is!
There is no official acro flight box.
General comment on the situation:
Pulling out a rule in the middle of the season and start penalizing the pilots is not a fair act. One reason behind the control is to lower the number of water landings, but asking for a valid local license only makes the foreign pilots to pack up and leave the site. A 300 euro fine can break a young acro pilot's summer budget, one can't fly with a nice mindset, and very frustrating to change holiday plans unexpectedly. Just an example, a group of about 10 foreign pilots showed up and bought their season card (156 euro) and water rescue donation stickers (20 euro each), but were never told about the need of Austria license to fly legally. They left after a few days and two of them got fined (2 x 300euro). This was an expensive three day vacation!
On the other hand, the pilots who have local licenses are listed by the police and they are allowed to fly. This has a bad affect on the community.
Hopefully the situation will clear up, and the new rules will be announced before the next season.
This is a list of internation pilots who been affected by this situation. Mayority of these pilots have left already, or will leave in the next couple of days or canceled their trips, because of this situation.
Alex Nelubow, France
Arnold Vandoorne, Belguim
Atanas Ovcharov, Bulgaria
Attila Pethe, Hungary
Bán Zoltán, Hungary
Caroline Lewis, United States of America
Craig Taylor, New Zealand
Csaba Virág, Hungary
Damaris Lillo, Colombia
Dénes Kovács, Hungary
Emil Tzolof, Bulgaria
Éva Bárhoff, Hungary
Fabien Curvo, France
Guillaume Simon, France
Harvith Fabian Lizcano, Columbia
Ivan Kalibatzev, Bulgaria
Ivan Vrstosek, Serbia
Jeff Chipaux, France
Marika Pechackova, Czech Republic
Maxime Neubrand, France
Maxime Poirette, France
Maxime Renger, France
Nathalie Reocreux, France
Norbert Biri, Hungary
Nova Dasalla, United States of America
Petar Loncar, Serbia
Radek Hrabkovsky, Czech Republic
Sebastien Kassubek, France
Simon Weger, Italy
Slavek Tmej, Czech Republic
Stephen Gichuki, France
Szilárd Berkei, Hungary
Szilárd Farkas, Hungary
Tamás Székely, Hungary
Veselin Ovcharov, Bulgaria
Yassine Ndoubela, France
Yohann Soo, France
Yungak Hwang, South Korea
Zoltán Molnár, Hungary
+5 more French pilots
If you are also effected by this situation and want to be presented in this list, please let us know in a comment.
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There was already conversation on this in the Gerlitzen expenses topic. Read the comments there, but leave your new comments on this article.
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This article was written by Szilárd Farkas (Lupus) and other international pilots. The information within the article may not be correct, and the author doesn't take any responsibility about it's correctness, but these are the facts and happenings we witnessed or heard of.
Latest Comments
There's one thing I'm concerning about. If a pilot comes from Europe can hope that european laws are valid in a european country as Austria is. If not, local authorities should have warned about it! You could still buy a season ticket for the Kanzelbahn without any warning that please check your licence. This I think is a scam. The local club was silent too. Poor thing...
For some reason I can't believe the owners of the Strandbad are hating paragliders. I can imagine if I was the owner, I would be concerned due to an impact of a pilot just 5 meters away from the wooden walk where all my visitors and kids are in water, by increasing numbers of emergency landings in the crowded are (they could have landed in water in order not to destroy sunsails, frightening people and so on, too).
It's a fact, that the number of pilots increased over the last 10 years, which is great for our sport, but must lead to regulations, too. I debt crying for discrimination, hatred or even worse will lead to a happy end.
Unfortunatelly, like someone mentioned, the economical effort of us paragliders is not that high. Yes, camp candy may close, but people will head to Gerlitzen and watch the sorrounding environment of lakes, they will buy accessories and they will take tandem flights as well. I doubt it is not an adequat option try to push by mentioning 'economic efforts of paragliders'.
The only thing we can do is work together with the Aero Club to find a solution ASAP.
I hope, there will be changes in near future in order to keep this unique place for every pilot!
I new about Gerlitzen before and I have met the great society there and got to know it better this year. YES I AM effected by this very much, because I like to come back and like the people there, but now it seems there will be few of them left when I come again... Am I allowed to come? Am I welcome? It seems that I am not...
Have those private property owners been done any evil from us, paraglider pilots? Some emergency landing which endangered or hurt them?? I guess they are those who called the police - the police have enough of their own work and would not come just on their own decision... This is for sure property owner lobby - they want only rich immobile pensioners to come and spend their money at them... Yes, I also have the season ticket and donated to the rescue team - they both would seem happy that I do not come again, but I do not think so... This Strandbad camping has even tandem paragliding not listed in the activity list. They hate us for somewhat reason!
Guys, please, do whatever is in your possibilities to keep the place for acro. Thanks!
Slavek Tmej, Czech Rep.
There has to be a way to protest. If those rules apply and are striktly followed then how is it possible for competitions like X-Alps and so on to work, its hardly plausable for all pilots to get Austrian/German or swiss licences.
Since people from all over the world come to Gerlitzen the whole town will lose a part of there tourism. The lift owners, logistiks and shops will all lose income since fewer people will visit. I dont think the county wants that and if they are afraid of accidents the should also make skiing/mountainbiking and so on more difficult for people to exercise.
I think a more realistic solution has to be made and all us Paragliders and the county have to get along.
This is pretty sad and crazy...However, by the number of acro pilots visiting the "acro heaven" for so many years I could see something coming. But this is heavy...Gerlitzen is really the hearth of Europe's (or even the World's) acro community and I hope that a solution will be found soon!
Good luck!
What about italian flight licence?
Warum komme ich mir nur immer wie eine Weihnachtsgans vor, die ausgenommen werden will, sobald ich auf Österreichischem Boden bin?
People go to Austria and Germany for education, France and Italy for recreation and fun. That happens when you are trying to mix them. Nothing new under the sun.
Bulgaria for cheap alcohol :)
I just wrote what the law says......
Hi Skok,
even though I'm not directly affected by this s**t going on (i got a german license), i really appreciate your work! I hope you guys will find a good solution for everyone.
To all the affected pilots:
I´m really sorry for you and the trouble right now. But please don´t think or say that this is discrimination or racism. I don´t think it is. It´s just the way the law is written right know. And the police´s job is to (try) to keep these laws.The 3 countries Austria, Switzerland and Germany accept each others licenses, because they know about each others standards in instruction/teaching. Austria doesn´t know about the "quality" of a Bulgarien licence for example. So it is the easiest way not to accept this license.
Of course it doesn´t say anything about flying skills. It´s just the easiest way for the authorities.
So please stay patient and let´s hope our austrian flyingbuddies find a good solution! Thanks for your effort!
Andi
Hallo Friends!
First of all I want to SHOUT OUT!!! How we, the local pilots and all pilots I know that are flying here are sad! We are sad and mad about the situation and do our best to bring our part to solve the problem and get the Aero Club working out a solution! I, and others had a lot of conversations with them allready and will keep on until there is an aceptebl way!
Sorry for all of you who are now affected by the situation but stay with us! We will find a way!
@Teresa and flghtbook story:
Sorry Teresa, but the Aero Club told me something different:
When I was talking to the aero club they were telling me, that if there is no official text that you don´t have to have it with you it can be layed out by the organ who proves it that you have to have it with you. Why?: because your license is just valid in combination with a flight book and if they ask for your license than it is more or less a must to see if all the rest that makes a license valid is there.
They also told me, that the e-flight book is something for the motoriced PPL Pilots.
concerning the maximum fee
If they are allowed to check your flight book is one question, but they are allowed to check if you have a valide license, and this includes that you have to hava a flight book and an id with you. otherwhise they can not have proof. BUT how much money they are allowed for what they could not tell me at all. And this is a problem because it is not whriten in the aeronautic law how high the fines can be. This is a mather of the police, and they du usualy charge 35€ if you don´t have your driving license with you, but a flight license???? Actually they don´t know!
Trying to fight? --> Bad Idea I belive! Better pay and get a lawyer later to get the money back. The police is like this:
If you dont pay they take your glider.... if they are allowed or not dosen´t meather
BUT! If you don´t give it to them the case is civil disorder or also called obstruction a police officer in the corse of his duty. No meather if he is right or not! Then you will pay, and there is also a posibility for them to confine you.
Please have patience but keep on discussing this and lets keep on putting pressure on our federations!
Wishing you all save landings!
skok
Teresa, thanks for these law snippets, and the links. As much as I can tell without German knowledge, these are only about the flight book. Can you also tell which is the paragraph number and for the law which states that only the austrian/german/swiss license is accepted?
Flugbuch
§ 42. Jeder Zivilluftfahrer und jeder Flugschüler hat zum Nachweis seiner Betätigung als Zivilluftfahrer beziehungsweise als Flugschüler ein Flugbuch zu führen. Dieses ist in seinen für den Nachweis der für die Erlangung und Verlängerung von Zivilluftfahrerscheinen oder damit verbundenen Berechtigungen erforderlichen fliegerischen Betätigung wesentlichen Teilen bei der Ausübung der in § 27 angeführten Tätigkeiten mitzuführen oder im Falle eines in elektronischer Form geführten Flugbuches der Austro Control GmbH oder einer auf Grund einer Übertragung gemäß § 140b zuständigen Behörde ohne ungebührliche Verzögerung vorzulegen. Der Bundesminister für Verkehr, Innovation und Technologie hat die näheren Einzelheiten zu Art, Form und Inhalt von Flugbüchern durch Verordnung festzulegen.
http://www.fva.at/fileadmin/user_upload/userfiles/2009/Luftrecht/Persona...
S. 36 §75
Aufzeichnungen
§ 75. Der Halter von Fallschirmen, Hänge- und Paragleitern sowie motorisierten Hänge- und Paragleitern hat Aufzeichnungen über die maßgeblichen Betriebsdaten der Luftfahrzeuge (Absprünge, Flugstunden, Betriebsstunden der Antriebseinheit u.ä.) und über die Instandhaltungsarbeiten an den Luftfahrzeugen in geeigneter Form zu führen.
Hi teresa, could you post a link where the information about the flightbook is written down?
cheers,
bastian
Damaris Lillo, Colombia
The law says you have to write a flightbook but its nowhere written that you have to take it with you on each flight. they are not allowed to give you a penalty for not having the flightbook with you!