The aim of the XC League is to encourage pilots to fly cross-country in the UK and to provide them with the means of measuring their achievements compared to others. It hopes to provide a varied and interesting level of tasks, and to go some way towards preparing pilots for world distance record attempts. And also, of course, to find a National XC Champion!
Entry to the XC League is open to all full members of the BHPA who have a Pilot or higher rating. The Pilot exam demonstrates the knowledge and skills necessary for XC planning, in particular for avoiding restricted airspace. It is essential, in the current climate, that the BHPA and the flying community as a whole do everything they can to prevent future airspace infringements. If you are a Club Pilot and interested in XC flying, then please study for and take the Pilot exam first. The next Airprox filed could well chain us to the hills forever.
Where the XC League hosts local Club Leagues the Club rules apply and may allow Club Pilots to enter flights in their leagues.
The XC League has a £5 entry fee, which is payable on submitting your first flight of the season. Please make your cheque out to BHPA Paragliding Competitions, write your BHPA number on the back, and send it to: XC League, 13 Kerrison Place, London, W5 5NG.
If your club league is listed, you can enter flights without having to pay. If your flight qualifies for the main XC League you can opt to enter this as well by paying the £5 entry fee.
This document is divided into the following sections:
If you have any queries about these rules, please email
All flights must be flown on a paraglider (or a hang glider if your club league allows it) between 1st November 2007 and 31st October 2008. A Winter League ends on the last day of March 2008. Pilots should submit their flight within one calendar month, but by 15th November 2008 at the latest. Supporting evidence (IGC track log files, barograph trace etc) should also be submitted within one month.
The XC League is open to all classes of paragliders (and hang gliders, where applicable). Overall scoring is based on a pilot's six highest scoring flights. The scores of the top 4 pilots of each Club are computed to award the best Club Trophy. Launches can be from a hill or winch. When more than one glider is used, the wing that was used on the highest scoring flight is listed. Tandem gliders are allowed but only the pilot in command scores.
This year sees the introduction of an International League, which is open to all UK pilots who are BHPA members. Its purpose is to show the flights that UK pilots do overseas, either on flying holidays or at places where they happen to live. The league will be run using the standard XC rules, with the following exceptions:
Note that flights done in the UK and entered into the standard league will be automatically entered in the International League if they qualify.
You can enter as many flights into the XC League as you like, but only your six best will count. The permissible types of flight can be split into three categories: Standard Flights, Loop Flights and Declared Flights.
The details below are given for UK flights. Minimum distance is 10km for Open Distance (although this may be less for your club league), 15km for Turnpoint and Loop flights, and 25km for Declared Flights. Multipliers will not be given if the majority of the flight was on sea cliffs. Sea cliffs are defined as:
The scoring multipliers are shown below and are also summarized here.
Standard Flights are flights where you fly cross-country where your fancy takes you (usually downwind). Depending on whether you are flying with a GPS, you can enter your flight as either Open Distance or a Turnpoint Flight. Only Open Distance flights can be submitted with witnesses as evidence. For Turnpoint Flights you must submit the tracklog of your flight, downloaded from your GPS or flight instrument.
| Open Distance | |
| Minimum Distance: | 10km (club leagues may be less) |
| Score: | Distance |
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Open Distance flights do not have any turnpoints. Open distance flights will score the straight-line distance from the start point to the finish point. If you submit a tracklog, the start and finish points do not have to be your takeoff and landing. However, for witness flights only your takeoff and landing points are valid. |
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Score = Distance
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| UK Records | |
| Male: | 194.0km (John Sylvester 2007) |
| Female: | 125.0km (Judy Leden 2004) |
| Tandem: | 172.3km (Tim Guildford & Louise Maurice 2005) |
| Turnpoint Flight | |
| Minimum Distance: | 15km |
| Score: | Distance |
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Turnpoint Flights are open distance flights with a start and finish point, and up to 3 intermediate turnpoints. This means that you can use flight optimization software to compute your best distance. The start and finish points may be different to the actual takeoff and landing points. |
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Score = Distance (from start around 3 turnpoints to finish)
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| UK Records | |
| Note: | Not an official UK record category. If your flight is long enough, the Open Distance part will be used for that record. |
Loop Flights are flights where you fly a course taking in one or more turnpoints, then return to your original start point. You can then use flight optimization software to compute your best flight type and distance. The start/finish point may be different to the actual takeoff and landing points and is defined by a standard 400m radius cylinder.
This means that your tracklog does not have to form a complete loop but must come within 800m. You will score the distance around your turnpoints minus your actual loop gap, multiplied by the scoring factor. Please note the following:
| FAI Triangle | |
| Minimum Distance: | 15km (after deduction of loop gap) |
| Score: | Distance x 2, or Distance x 2.7 |
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An FAI Triangle is one which satisfies the FAI 28% Rule (shortest side must be greater than, or equal to, 28% of the total distance). To fly a triangle you must fly to three turnpoints and return to the original start point. |
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Score = (Distance around 3 turnpoints minus loop gap) x 2 (<25km), x 2.7 (25km+)
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| UK Records | |
| Male: | 68.3km (Steve Senior 1999) |
| Female: | 19.9km (Abigail Barr 2005) |
| Tandem: | 27.5km (Tim Guildford & Louise Maurice 2005) |
| Note: | For UK records your Start/Finish cylinder cannot be along a leg and must be at one of the turnpoints. |
| Flat Triangle | |
| Minimum Distance: | 15km (after deduction of loop gap) |
| Score: | Distance x 1.5, or Distance x 2 |
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A Flat Triangle is a triangular flight as above, except that it does not conform to the FAI 28% rule. To fly a triangle you must fly to three turnpoints and return to the original start point. |
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Score = (Distance round 3 turnpoints minus loop gap) x 1.5 (<25km), x 2 (25km+)
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| UK Records | |
| Note: | Not an official UK record category. If your flight is long enough, the Out and Return part will be used for that record. |
| Out and Return | |
| Minimum Distance: | 15km (after deduction of loop gap) |
| Score: | Distance x 1.5, or Distance x 2 |
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Out and Return flights commence at a start point, go to a single turnpoint, and return to the original start point. Note that if you optimize your flight, the software will find you an extra turnpoint and score you more for a Flat Triangle, so this one is for the traditionalists or the record-chasers. |
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Score = (Distance from Start round TP1 and back minus loop gap) x 1.5 (<25km), x 2 (25km+)
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| UK Records | |
| Male: | 52.5km (Chris Canata 2006) |
| Female: | 30.3km (Abigail Barr 2005) |
| Tandem: | None |
| Note: | If you fly a long enough Flat Triangle flight, the Out and Return part will be used for this record. |
Declared flights are flights where you fly a course that you have previously declared, using 400m radius cylinders as your turnpoints. See Declaring Flights below for more information. Please note the following:
There is no need to land between submitted flights provided that complete evidence is provided for each one. For example, you could complete a triangle then fly open distance, or fly around the triangle twice without having to land in between. Note, however, you can only declare one task per flight.
| Flight to Goal | |
| Minimum Distance: | 25.8km |
| Score: | Distance x 1.25 |
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Flights to goal commence at a start point and go to a finish (goal) point. Completed goal flights score the straight-line distance between the two turnpoint centres minus 2 x 400m multiplied by 1.25. |
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Score = (Declared Distance - 2 x 400m) x 1.25
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| UK Records | |
| Male: | 134.5km (Neil Roberts 2007) |
| Female: | 65.7km (Fiona Macaskill 1998) |
| Tandem: | None |
| Declared Out and Return | |
| Minimum Distance: | 26.6km |
| Score: | Distance x 2.5 |
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Out and Return flights commence at a start point, go to a single turnpoint, and return to the original start point. The coordinates of the start point and finish point are therefore identical. The start/finish point may be different to the actual takeoff and landing points but the flight distance is only measured from the start, to the other turnpoint and back. You will score the distance between the two turnpoints minus 4 x 400m multiplied by 2.5. |
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Score = (Declared Distance - 4 x 400m) x 2.5
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| UK Records | |
| Male: | 31.1km (Mike Cavanagh 2007) |
| Female: | None |
| Tandem: | None |
| Declared FAI Triangle | |
| Minimum Distance: | 27.4km |
| Score: | Distance x 3.75 |
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An FAI Triangle is one which satisfies the FAI 28% Rule (shortest side must be greater than, or equal to, 28% of the total distance). To fly a triangle you must fly to three turnpoints, and return to the original start point. The coordinates of the start point and finish point are therefore identical and must be one of the turnpoints. The start/finish point may be different to the actual takeoff and landing points. You will score the distance around the turnpoints minus 6 x 400m multiplied by 3.75. |
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Score = (Declared Distance - 6 x 400m) x 3.75
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| UK Records | |
| Male: | 37.1km (Graham Steel & Simon Ford 2005) |
| Female: | None |
| Tandem: | None |
| Competition Goal | |
| Minimum Distance: | 25km after cylinder deductions |
| Score: | Distance x 1.25 |
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If you reach goal in a British Championships (UK and overseas legs) or BPC task, you can enter your flight as a Competition Goal. You do not need to make a declaration. Route data is entered for you and is designed to maximize the scoring distance. This is calculated from the start point around the turnpoints to goal, minus the cylinders, multiplied by 1.25. Turnpoints using cylinders larger than 400m may be omitted if including them reduces the scoring distance. |
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| UK Records | |
| Note: | Not an official UK record category. |
The following tables summarize the flight multipliers for the UK and International leagues.
| UK Flights | <25km | 25km+ | 25km+ and Declared |
| Flight to Goal Competition Goal |
- | - | 1.25 |
| Out and Return | 1.5 | 2 | 2.5 |
| Flat Triangle | 1.5 | 2 | - |
| FAI Triangle | 2 | 2.7 | 3.75 |
| International Flights | 25km+ | 25km+ and Declared |
| Flight to Goal Competition Goal |
- | 1.2 |
| Out and Return | 1.25 | 1.6 |
| Flat Triangle | 1.25 | - |
| FAI Triangle | 1.6 | 2 |
The onus is on the submitting pilot to produce irrefutable evidence that the flight they are claiming took place, if challenged. The XC League is policed to ensure that no unfair play takes place, although in essence it is largely based on trust and relies on pilots entering data accurately and honestly. Pilots should be careful to abide by the rules and provide all the necessary proof to validate their flights.
Primary evidence is a 3D GPS track log. A track log in the form of an IGC file must be provided, within one month of the flight. See GPS Help for information about recording and downloading your track logs, and submitting a valid IGC file.
The track log must provide unequivocal evidence that no intermediate landing was made and must generally substantiate the flight. Interruptions in the tracklog will not invalidate the flight provided gaps do not bring into question the continuity of the flight (generally speaking gaps of less than 10 minutes are acceptable). Notwithstanding, your track log must include your claimed start point, any turnpoints, and finish point.
Open Distance flights (i.e. no turnpoints) can still be validated with just a take-off and a landing witnesses, provided that your likely track is clear of certain controlled airspace - see below.
Altitude data is required if your track log or direct-line track on any flight takes you:
Altitude data can be provided from either a 3D track log, or a 2D track log and a separate barograph trace. If you intend making flights close to the above airspace, you should consider buying a GPS or flight instrument which records altitude data. A selection of popular instruments that do is shown below:
Enter the data requested in the fields provided. Filling in web forms can be particularly tedious, but we have endeavoured to make this process as user-friendly and painless as possible. Please be careful with your spelling and capitals when you are entering text fields. Entries like adVANCE Omga 7 as the glider, or long MIND as the takeoff are visible to everyone and make both this website and the pilot concerned look unprofessional.
If you do make a mistake, you can edit your flight details later. This option is available when you are logged on and view your flight.
If you are using a GPS to validate your flight then you must upload your tracklog directly to the XC League. Make sure you are logged on, then view your flight and click the Upload button. See GPS Help for information about recording and downloading your tracklogs, and uploading a valid IGC file.
Declared Flights are Flights to Goal, Out and Return or Triangle flights that are declared in advance. You can make your declaration in either of two ways:
Note that if you send an email, please don't leave the subject line empty (put "Declared flight"), as some anti-spam software deletes these mails.
Each of these methods will provide a time-stamp for your declaration that will be valid for 24 hours.
You can use either OS Landranger coordinates, or Lat/Lon in decimal degree format (dd° mm.mmm'). Note that UK declarations will be accepted in either format.
You must state: BHPA No, Surname, Start grid ref, [optional turnpoint grid refs], Goal grid ref and approximate length of flight.
For example, a Flight to Goal using OS Landranger coordinates would be declared as follows:
And the same flight declaration using Lat/Lon coordinates:
You can only declare one task per flight. If you make multiple separate flight declarations on one day, only the last one submitted prior to the start of the attempted flight is valid. There is however no restriction on the number of declared flights that you can complete on a given day. Also, you can fly a declared task any number of times in a day, without necessarily landing in between, though bear in mind the 2% height rule."
Successful declared flights score the distance flown, multiplied by a specific factor - see Flight Types. This will not show when you first enter the flight, but once the declaration and GPS tracklog have been verified you will be awarded the multiplier. You should upload the IGC file within one month of the flight. See GPS Help for information about downloading your tracklog and submitting a valid IGC file.
Note that for declared out and returns and triangles, and for local records, FAI rules apply that state your start and finish points must be within one of the three turnpoint cylinders. Competition Goal flights are, by their very nature, officially declared flights, and you do not need to make a declaration yourself. You will however, have to enter these flights into the XC League yourself.
In line with the FAI Sporting Code, the XC League uses only Cylinders as your observation zone. A Cylinder is defined as the airspace in a vertical cylinder of 400 meter radius centred on a GPS Waypoint and your GPS track log must show that you were in it. There must be either:
The scored distance will be the minimum distance it is possible to fly by entering the specified observation zones. For example; if you declare a 25km triangle your flight would only score 22.6 km (25 - (6 * 400m)). So, in order to complete a 25km speed triangle, you would have to declare a 27.4 km triangle although it would still be possible to complete it by flying 25 km.
For more information, including diagrams, see the FAI Sporting Code.
Ordnance Survey Landranger coordinates in the form AB123456 are required, where AB is the two-letter reference to the 100km square, 123 is the easting and 456 is the northing. When reading OS coordinates from a GPS, ensure that the Map Datum is set to Ord Srvy GB (rather than the default WGS84) and that the Position Format is British Grid. Your GPS will display more than three digits for each part of the coordinate, so just use the first three digits. For example, SU 12345 12345 should be entered SU123123.
Make sure you clear your tracklog before your flight, and that tracklog recording is turned on. For Open Distance and Turnpoint flights, it is useful to press Mark and Enter when you land, to create a reference waypoint for your landing position. Alternatively, you can open your track later in a flight analysis program and use its flight optimization option to calculate your best distance.
For declared flights you must select your turnpoints before the flight, make a declaration, enter the route into your GPS and fly around the turnpoints in the declared sequence. Your tracklog will be checked to ensure you have entered your declared observation zones at all turnpoints.
To download your tracklog and create a valid IGC file you will need to download a small program called GPSDump. This is free software and is the only authorized program for creating IGC files for the XC League. Make sure you have the latest version, as it is updated as new flight instruments come out. Run the program and follow the instructions below:
With your tracklog displayed, it is now important to select the portion of the track data that relates to the actual XC flight in question. Your GPS records data all the time it is switched on and we do not want your activity for the whole day. If you did not clear your tracklog before taking off, then you could easily have several flights, possibly from previous days, in the log.
Note: The reason we only allow the use of GPSDump is because it is a proven, secure way of saving data directly from a flight instrument into a file. If the data or filename is altered in any way the file will fail the validity check. GPSDump is our official FAI observer!
Your tracklog should be submitted within one month of your flight. You can upload your tracklog directly to the XC League at any time. Make sure that you are logged on to the website, view the flight in question and click the Upload button. Now browse for and enter your saved IGC file and click Next. You will have to wait a short time for the flight to be processed, after which you will be taken back to the XC League table.
If you find that your displayed tracklog is incorrect (and it shows your car journey home, for example), you can delete it, correct the problem in GPSDump and re-upload it. To delete your tracklog use the Click here to edit flight details link when you are viewing your flight.
If your tracklog upload fails, tell us about the problem and email it to us at:
The XC League is actively policed for the fairness of all competitors. In general, the flight evidence is examined and the flight is checked for airspace compliance. Flights that are submitted without the appropriate proof, or those which infringe airspace will be deleted from the XC League.
Cheating and poor airmanship may lead to disqualification with publicity. Pilots wishing to protest another pilot for poor airmanship or cheating should do so within one month of the flight concerned - email
The XC League provides support to Clubs to help them protect particulary sensitive XC Sites. Any flights from the following sites will only be allowed in the XC League if the pilot has complied with all the Club or Local Rules pertaining to the site in question.
In exceptional circumstances where a Club is at immediate risk of loosing a site mid way though a season, a new site may be added to this list. Any 'illegal' flights made after the updated list is published on the web site could be removed from the XC League.
The following changes have been implemented for this season:
This rule stated that the majority your flight had to be out of ridge lift in order to get a multiplier. However, defining what constitutes ridge lift has been a contentious issue in the past. Inland, it is very difficult to pinpoint if lift has been produced by purely wind being deflected up a hill (not allowed), or if weak thermals, wave or convergence have been involved (allowed).
The rule was originally introduced to stop pilots from winning the XC League by flying up and down sea cliffs like the Blackgang Chine run on the Isle of Wight and will still apply to flights on sea cliffs. For any flights inland, the definition has been abandoned in favour of a two-tier band of flight multipliers.
This system applies to loop flights (ie. Out and Returns and Triangles). It awards lower multipliers for flights under 25km, and reduces the FAI triangle multiplier to x 2.7. Introduced to stop inland flights which may be using ridge lift to get too high a multiplier. There are very few ridges which would allow easy 25km flights.
Increased from 15km to 25km, as it was felt that the multipliers should not be awarded for shorter flights (especially as these flights could be flown in mainly ridge-lift).
Last season's increase was instigated to encourage declared flights, which were just not being done. The result was certainly successful - the Flight to Goal record was broken 4 times, the first declared Out and Return was completed and there were 5 declared triangles flown, only 2 having ever been completed before. Two of these triangles were flown back-to-back in a single flight, breaking the speed record in the process.
This increase was not without its detractors, however, who felt that the multipliers were too high and skewed the validity of the league. So the multipliers are back to their previous levels. If they are as many declared flights as last season, then it will be interesting to see how people will feel about these original multipliers.
Brings us into line with current FAI rules. Only applies when a tracklog is used as flight evidence.
It is a bit of a compromise fitting a competition flight to an XC League declared flight. Based on last season's experiences and complaints, we have come up with another way of trying to keep everyone happy.
Reworded the rule concerning the wing displayed on the XC League: to be the wing used on the highest scoring flight.
Introduced not just for the International League, but because current flight instruments do not display OS coordinates.
Experimental at this stage, particularly the multipliers. Will doubtless evolve after a season's use.