A new Woody Valley GTO light size XL harness was found to have an emergency parachute retaining cable ‘pin’ that was too short. (This does not affect the GTO light 2, which has a different design.)
A small amount of movement could result in the pin releasing one of the retaining loops and increasing the risk of an inadvertent deployment of the parachute. The manufacturer has advised that this was a measuring error during production. This specifically affects the XL size of harness manufactured between May and December 2018. The serial number/ID code will be lower than 0943.
All owners of these harnesses are urged to immediately check the long yellow retaining cable before flying again. There should be at least 5cm of cable protruding beyond the loop to ensure a secure system. If your handle has a retaining pin that is too short, you are advised to contact Woody Valley or the dealer you purchased the harness from to obtain a replacement handle.
Issued by Angus Pinkerton, FSC Chairman, BHPA, June 24th 2021
A version of this safety notice was published in the August 2021 edition of UK BHPA Skywings magazine.