14 pilots killed in five years, safety concerns soar at Bir-Billing

Bir-Billing is one of the best aero-sport sites in the world, drawing paragliding pilots from across the globe. But inadequate safety and rescue measures have raised a question mark over the viability of adventure sports activities here, including the ongoing Paragliding World Cup.

Over the past five years, 14 pilots have lost their lives in around 30 paragliding accidents, highlighting the need for stricter regulations. An aero-sport enthusiast said the absence of world-class safety measures, which were a prerequisite for the Paragliding World Cup, “laid bare the lackadaisical approach of the event organiser (Bir Paragliding Association) and the Himachal Pradesh Government in strictly enforcing the safety guidelines.

Last week, a Belgian pilot died following a mid-air collision while a Polish pilot was rescued with the help of a helicopter from the high mountains yesterday. In the past several years, an average two pilots have died annually in accidents.

Gurpreet Dhindsa, who has been flying in Bir-Billing since 1997, said, “The number of accidents has increased as foreign pilots often bypass local instructors, who are familiar with the terrain. It should be made mandatory for foreign pilots to hire local instructors, which can significantly reduce accidents.”

Vinay Dhiman, District Tourism Officer of Kangra, said, “The Tourism Department does not have a regulatory role and it only facilitates paragliding. We ensure that the pilots coming here have a valid licence and the required experience to fly. We also take from them an indemnity bond stating ‘the state is not liable in case of an accident’.”

Currently, 281 pilots have been undertaking solo or tandem flights at Bir-Billing, with all of them having been licensed by the Tourism Department.

A helicopter with a winch is mandatory for rescuing pilots stranded in high mountains. However, no such helicopter is available at Bir-Billing even as the Bir Paragliding Association hires one for the world cup.

The foreign pilots get an insurance cover for accidents and whenever a pilot gets trapped in the mountains, the authorities in Baijnath—the SDM heads the paragliding monitoring committee—contact the insurance company.

It takes about three to four hours to contact the foreign insurance company. After the company gives the go-ahead, a helicopter company—most of them are based in Delhi or Dehradun—is contacted for the rescue. The helicopter takes another two to three hours to reach Bir-Billing, causing further delay. As such, it generally takes more than 24 hours to rescue a trapped pilot. In Europe, the maximum rescue time is about 40 minutes.