If you’re a paraglider pilot who likes to keep things light, simple and quick, the PHI ACCEL  Fast Packing Backpack is a really useful bit of kit.

One of the biggest benefits of a fast-packing bag is actually when you’re waiting around on the hill for the conditions to become flyable. Leaving your glider sitting in direct sunlight while you wait is a great way to accelerate UV damage and fade the fabric. With a fast pack, you can quickly get your wing and harness under cover without having to fully compress and pack everything away.

That can make a real difference over the life of your equipment. Your wing, harness and other kit will all benefit from spending less time baking in the sun, so the relatively small cost of a fast-packing bag can potentially pay for itself many times over by helping your gear last longer.

Compact enough to fit under the seat

One of the things we particularly like about the PHI ACCEL l bag is just how small and lightweight it is.

For example, with the Supair STRIKE 3 harness, there’s a pocket underneath the seat that’s large enough to accommodate the PHI ACCEL bag very neatly. That makes it exceptionally convenient — you can carry it with you without really noticing it’s there.

And unlike some simple fast-packing bags, this one actually has integrated shoulder straps, with padding, so it can be carried comfortably. The whole thing also packs into its own little storage bag.

Very quick to use

The real advantage becomes obvious when you’ve landed out and want to get back up the hill for another flight.

Maybe you’ve landed on a slope, or your wing is damp because you’ve been flying from wet grass. Rather than spending ages properly packing everything away, you can simply pull out the PHI ACCEL, unfold it and get your kit inside.

You can even do this while keeping your harness on.

The clever part of the design is the red strap across the middle. Put your kit on top of the bag, unclip the harness if necessary, and simply place it straight on top. Clip the red strap together and the bag effectively forms a box around your gear.

That makes it much easier to get everything inside without having to carefully stuff and arrange every part of your kit.

If you’re in a hurry, you can just chuck everything in. If you have more time, you can obviously pack it more neatly and treat your wing a little more gently.

Good compression and carrying shape

Another nice touch is the thick drawcord at the top, together with the three compression straps.

You don’t necessarily need to use all three, but doing so gives you a much better shape for carrying. As you tighten everything down, the bag becomes more triangular rather than a big round bundle.

And that makes a surprisingly big difference.

A lot of fast-packing bags end up as large, awkward, cylindrical shapes that aren’t particularly pleasant to carry. The PHI ACCEL is much better optimised for carrying because the load is pulled into a more compact shape.

It doesn't have waist straps, so it's not designed for carrying heavy equipment over really long distances. Something like the more substantial ADVANCE fast-packing bag will be more comfortable for that kind of job.

But there’s a trade-off: those larger bags are heavier and bulkier, whereas the Free*Xcel is tiny, light and extremely easy to store.

And importantly, you can fit it under the seat of a suitable harness or easily throw it into the back of your car.

Our verdict

For us, the PHI ACCEL Fast Packing Backpack hits a really useful sweet spot.

It’s light, compact, quick to deploy and surprisingly good to carry, while still giving you proper shoulder straps and a clever design that makes getting your gear inside much easier.

It’s not the most comfortable option if you regularly have to carry heavy paragliding equipment for several kilometres — for that, a larger fast-packing backpack with a proper hip belt makes more sense.

But if your priority is keeping things light and simple, and you want something you can always have with you, this is an excellent solution.

Nancy and I really like these bags, and they’ve actually become our main fast-packing bags. When we want to keep the whole setup light and uncomplicated, this is what we use most of the time.

Highly recommended for pilots who want a compact, practical fast-packing solution — and especially useful for protecting your expensive flying kit from unnecessary sun exposure while you wait for the next flight.

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